The Merging Wars
by Kazel Menra
Summary: A war that merged two realms, an evil that want to rule what's left, and a fallen hero whose life was dedicated to saving others. Join Sam as she makes her way through this new world to fight the evil that is Dark Parmius. Will she be able to do it alone or is there someone else that she has forgotten? This is the story of the Merging Wars and what came after. Come join the fun!
1. Awakening

**Ok, so I just joined and have no clue what so ever as to what I am doing… Yay! In any case hope you like my Danny Phantom story. It gets a little dark as you will probably figure out almost right off the bat. I will try and update at least once a week but we will see how it goes. I think that is all for now... Oh right that other thing...**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

She stood in a field of black roses, staring at a stone in the center that would shatter her world. Undergrowth had sent her here saying that the island needed a woman's touch, whatever that had meant. So she had happily come, fully expecting a tangle of green plants ready to be teased into a proper garden. Instead she had found this stunningly beautiful field of black roses with a strange looking stone at its heart. As she stares at the beauty before her soaking up the calm warmth of happy plants, her mind tugs at her an image long buried coming slowly back to life. Gently shooing the plants out of her path she took a step forward the feeling in her mind suddenly stronger as it showed her an image of a group of three people. Two of them were boys and the one in the center was a girl her arms thrown around the two boys in clear friendship. She couldn't see their faces but she felt as if she knew them and as she mentally reached for the picture the image faded swiftly leaving her with a sense that there was something missing. Stopping in confusion she looked down and realized she was standing before the stone as if she were drawn there. The stone was as tall as her shoulder and the plants loved it because they could climb higher getting more light by holding on to it. It was almost pillar like and was made of a stone that was a pretty swirl of black and white with a smattering of green flecks all across the surface. Marble her mind informed her uselessly as she took in its strange placement. The whole thing had been polished smooth the top slightly domed with flat sides and a flat front. It almost looked like an obelisk except the top was domed instead of pointed. Taking a moment to study it she noticed grooves on the front of the stone through the petals and leaves. Reaching out a hand she shooed them back and quickly realized the grooves were writing on the swirled black and white surface. After the black roses moved away she traced her fingertips along them reading the words slowly.

'Here lies a friend, son, brother, a hero to all who knew him. Danny Fenton / Danny Phantom.'

The image returned to her stronger this time and she could clearly see a boy with raven hair and blue eyes smiling at her waving. More images followed the first and she fell to her knees under the onslaught, the roses surrounding her slowly changing from pitch black to white as they returned her lost memories. Rich green rings appeared at her midsection changing her already unique attire. In her ghost form she had on a dark green halter top style dress that had purple vein like designs trailing down to the ends of the knee high dress. Leggings protected her legs before disappearing into black knee high boots. Green gloves covered her hands almost to her elbows and sported the same purple vein like designs her dress did. Her hair had grown in the passing years reaching a little past her shoulders now and hung loose down her back, though her bangs and front hair pieces were pulled out of her face in two braids that met at the back of her skull. A black rose held them in place. The green rings finished their journey revealing her human form in very different attire. A black corset like crop top covered her upper body with sheer purple sleeves that reached a little past her elbows and a sheer purple slip covering her midsection. A pair of dark purple almost black capris nearly met with the black combat boots on her feet. The gloves on her hands merely changed color to black and shortened to only cover up to her wrists. In both forms three things remained the same. Her hair, the small promise ring on her finger, and a green choker with a black rose in the middle on her neck. She didn't notice the change however; she was caught up in the sudden remembrance of her own name.

"Sam Mason" she whispered and started to sob one hand reaching out to run a hand across the words on Dannys grave.

Sam didn't know how long she remained there on the ground her mind rapidly reintegrating her memories. The newly white roses surrounded her, comforted her, and after a while whispered to her that someone was coming.

"Have you finally returned to us little flower?" a voice asked and Sams head jerked up trying to identify the speaker. The white roses behind Dannys grave parted and Undergrowth emerged a look of sorrow on his features.

"Undergrowth…" Sam whispered at a loss for words. She tried to stand unsure of herself only knowing that he had taken care of her for who knows how long. He hadn't had to and no one had asked him to. Undergrowth had done it on his own and Sam felt confused as to why he was suddenly here. He wasn't there to harm her he had sent her to this tiny out of the way island in the first place. That thought opened a memory in her mind and Sam suddenly remembered that Undergrowth had helped her train her fledgling plant powers when she had first gotten them, back when Danny was still alive.

That knowledge coupled with the understanding that he had been taking care of her after she had lost her memories instantly made Sam view him as a father figure as much as Danny had viewed Clockwork as one. He came around to her side slowly reaching out to her and Sam fell into his arms with another sob the last of her memories slowly falling back into place in her mind.


	2. Memories

**So extra chapter this week! This is the start of a really long memory/back-story. Let's face it a lot of time has passed since the series dropped all of us off on the edge of a cliff. In any case I hope you all like it. We will get to battles and other fun stuff soon I promise! I think that is all for now... Oh right that other thing...**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Everything had been going so well and many things had changed for the better. Number one everyone in Amity Park knew Dannys secret and although it made had made his life easier it had also in its own way made his life more difficult. It had taken time for him to get used to everything and also right after the Disastroid his clone Danni had popped back up. She had shown up sick and freezing and Danny had recognized the signs and symptoms of her ice core activating. He had flown her to Frostbite as fast as he could manage while Jazz and his parents followed close behind. It was a good thing they had because while Dannis ghost half was stable due to the ectodejecto, her ice core activating had begun to cause her human half to die. Together with Frostbite they were able to create a serum that permanently stabilized and merged her two halves. This had a slight side effect and had caused her to shrink to about the size of a six year old which was more appropriate considering her actual age. Danni had always been small since her creation but now she truly was the little sister. It had been impossible to hide her origins from his parents if they were to save her life and both Danny as well as Danielle had been nervous as to how they would react. His parents had been in shock over this new revelation but once she had fully healed and mastered her fledgling ice power, they welcomed her into the family as a daughter.

Time passed until it was several years after the Disastroid had come through. Danny had been about to turn 18 when he had gotten the shock of a lifetime. He was to be officially crowned the ghost king at 18 although, until they actually found the crown Danny would really just have the ring of rage and the castle to play with. The Observants wouldn't say how they had gotten the ring from the sarcophagus but at the exact time of his birth the ring and a summons had arrived for Danny in the hands of a very put out and annoyed Observant. Danny had immediately gone to Clockwork who had seemed amused at Dannys mounting horror. Clockwork had given Danny a choice about accepting the crown however, he did state that while Danny could refuse the crown it would probably throw the ghost zone into chaos. Chaos stemming from the fact that no one ghost would or could ever be neutral to others. Also the fight for the crown would then be a battle over who's power was greater. At these words Danny had blanched and felt trapped until Clockwork pointed out if he did become king he could truly be the bridge between the two worlds. Realizing he was right and after chatting a while longer Danny decided to at least accept the title. Clockwork had simply smiled and told him to invite anyone he felt like inviting to the ceremony and gave him the days and time to be at Pariahs castle. Danny had shown up to Pariahs castle for the official ceremony even though they still didn't have the crown and he had endured the whole shebang even though the castle creped the heck out of him and practically every human that had been invited. It had even creped out most of the attending ghosts which was saying a lot. Sam had guessed it was because under Pariahs rule it had seen nothing but dark deeds for the most part. Finally the ceremony was finished and the last thing Danny had to do was sit on the throne. Danny had laughed about this with Sam and Tucker because the throne was built for someone far more massive than him. However when Danny had sat the most astonishing thing had happened. The castle had changed around all of them going from dark and creepy to a place filled with light and life. Clockwork had later explained to him that the castle while it wasn't sentient, it was alive in its own way as only a ghost lair could. By changing to fit Danny' s personality the castle and therefore the ghost zone itself had recognized him as the new king crown or no crown. While the castle was an awesome place to hang out and the ring was a nice power boost if needed, Danny hadn't really liked the idea of being a ghost king. He simply wanted to go to college and find a job and do all the things normal teens do. He knew that he would eventually have to accept the responsibility one day but he wanted to be prepared for such a thing and he didn't want to rule like pariah through fear. So Danny took his time and for the most part he kept putting the whole thing off. This often made for a strange balance because while most of the people in the world knew the ghosts now had a king, for the most part no humans with exception of his parents and a few others knew that the king was in fact Danny Phantom. The ghosts in the ghost zone however all knew his status and for the most part respected him. Although they still came to pick fights every so often. Some of them were straight up challenges for the whole king of the ghost zone and Danny had refused to let his friends help him fight in those battles.

Sam had started helping him fight when she had gotten her ghost powers after an accident two weeks after her 16 birthday. The accident had killed her parents and had technically killed her as well but Danny had managed to shock her back to life using his ecto energy making her a half ghost like him. Now years later Sam had mastered her powers with Danny and Undergrowths help. At this point in time people had gotten used to him being half ghost and fighting the good fight although there had been a few ups and downs when Danny had almost let the fame go to his head.

Danny and Sam were now 22 years old and had been together since the Diastroid incident. Much to the jealousy of many girls around the world they were still going strong and had decided to go to college together at Amity Parks community college. Tucker was taking online classes and still mayor somehow, though Sam swore it was because he hacked the polls. Valerie kept him honest though, she and tucker had been going out almost as long as Sam and Danny had. Life was good and Sam supposed that it was because everything was going so well that it eventually came to an end.

It all started with the reappearance of Vlad Plasmius a little over a year ago. No one had seen him in years. After the Disastroid he had simply vanished and everyone assumed he was flying about the cosmos bitter and alone. He first appeared in the ghost zone only to vanish just as fast. Danny checked it out expecting an attack or something but he couldn't find any trace of him. He had been sighted near Phantoms keep which was slightly concerning, what was even more concerning was the sarcophagus of forever sleep had vanished from the darkest dungeon the castle had. The bad thing was that no one was really sure how long the sarcophagus had been missing. The other strange thing was that the ones who had spotted Vlad had all claimed that he looked different and not in a good way. Danny had put the alert out but no one could find him. They searched every inch of the ghost zone and many ghosts even pitched in to help search the planet but it was in vain. No one could find him and almost a year later there was no longer a need to search for him. Vlad had started in Amity Park where everything had gone wrong for him. There had been a carnival going on next to town hall and Team Phantom was at school. Vlad had gone on a rampage through the carnival destroying property, attacking random people, and overall being an annoyance. By the time Danny and Sam had shown up Vlad had already made his escape kidnapping several people as he had left. Danny had done all he could to find Vlad but they hadn't had any luck. They had started to help people clean up when Vlad had made his reappearance.

"Do I have your pitiful attention now?" Vlad had asked his voice booming through the air

Danny transformed and flew up to face him motioning for Sam to stay and protect the people on the ground.

"Let the people that you took go Vlad. They have nothing to do with any of this." Danny snapped eyeing him carefully wondering what in the world had happened to him.

Vlad had practically doubled in size. His hair was black and shaggy in the back with the front pieces sticking up from his head like horns. His fangs were longer if possible and he had a goatee covering his chin. His outfit had changed as well. He wore a black tunic like shirt and black pants. A silver belt and gauntlets covered his hands while a black cape hung from his shoulders the underside of it was red. The creepiest new thing about him was his eyes however. One was its usual red but the other was almost a highlighter green color.

"I am no longer Vlad boy. I am Now and forever more Dark Parmius!" He snarled as he fired a powerful almost blood colored ectobast at him.

Danny dodged and couldn't help but laugh. "Dark Parmius? Dude your name sounds like old cheese!"

Dark Parmius face twisted into a look of hatred. "Laugh it up child for I am coming. When I decide to strike the dimensions shall tremble at my might and not even you will be able to stand in my way. I am declaring war Phantom." Has spat the word as if it were a curse and Danny could only gape at him.

"War?! What in the worlds are you talking about?!Vlad… Parmius or whatever you want to be called return the people you took and maybe we can work something out." Danny had answered even as his instincts told him to blast him.

"Never." Parmius declared and sent a shockwave of energy away from him almost knocking Danny out of the air. By the time Danny had recovered he had vanished once again.

Everyone searched for Dark Parmius after that in both the human and the ghost zone. No one could find him and soon they realized that more people were disappearing. Human beings vanished all over the world every day however these disappearances left a ghostly marker where the humans vanished. People started to get upset saying that the ghosts were stealing them but many ghost were upset and blaming humans for taking ghosts captive. They especially blamed organizations like the GIW and Danny had to step in several times to make sure that things didn't escalate into a war between the ghosts and human beings. Things were tense over the fact that ghosts were also disappearing. Because Danny was officially their king it was his job to protect the ghost zone and its inhabitants. He was able to ease the tension between the realms by acting as a mediator and the ghosts slowly began to trust other humans outside of Team Phantom. Some of the more important rulers of the ghost zone like Pandora, Dora, Frostbite and others went out into the world to explore and to speak with the humans in power in areas that resembled there homes in the ghost zone. They helped ease the tension further and gave Danny time to really get a feel for the ghost zone itself. There was no census for the inhabitants of the ghost zone which made it very hard to determine who of in some cases what was missing. Many ghosts of the zone were very low level or animalistic and it was difficult to keep tabs on them all anyways, however as Danny became more proficient at feeling out the ghost zone he would swear that he could almost feel that there were less low level ghosts. No one had any ideas what this meant but no one was prepared for Parmius next strike. Everyone expected an attack against Amity Park and was prepared for it, so when he didn't attack Amity Park they were blind sighted by just how high Dark Parmius had set his sights. When Danny heard the news even he couldn't fathom why exactly Dark Parmius went after the white house. He nearly succeeded in killing the president and claimed that since the world worshiped phantom as their hero they could be destroyed right along with him. He repeated his declaration of war against the world and his desire to destroy everything in his path. The world governments declared a state of emergency and Dark Parmius became the most wanted being in both realms. To make matters worse all eyes turned to Danny who had no idea what to do next.


	3. Starting a War

**I am updating early so yay! I hope you all like it because we start to get into some of the battles. The really good stuff is yet to come so stay tuned.**

 **War is a fight between life and death. On this battlefield it's hard to know the difference. - said by a human in battle**

 **I think that is all for now... Oh right that other thing...**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Dark Parmius became the most hated bieng in both realms and the people on the hunt for Parmius redoubled their efforts. Still no matter how hard they tried they couldn't find him although seemingly random attacks continued to occur all over the world. Some people blamed Danny and asked why he couldn't find Parmius. All Danny could do is redouble his own efforts to try and find him as well. He ran himself ragged and several times Sam, Jazz, Danni, and even his parents had to force him to take a rest and sleep. Almost six months after attacking the president, Parmius introduced a new threat. They were nicknamed Goons though no one knew who started calling them that. They looked very similar to the skeleton soldiers Pariah dark had used when he had invaded Amity Park all those years ago. They were fairly easy to defeat alone, the problem was that most of the time they ran in large packs and attacked in packs as well. Some people found that at times there were so many of them you would simply get swamped by their sheer numbers. The Goons were capable self regeneration and duplication to a certain extent. There was usually a main goon that if you could find and destroy it the rest would stop regenerating and be easier to destroy. They never spoke and were not intelligent what's so ever in fact most of the time they seemed almost programmed to fulfill single missions of sorts. Once these missions were complete, the items or people stolen they would seemingly disappear into thin air. For the most part they would descend randomly on small towns and ransack them stealing everyone and everything not tied down. On some occasions this even included the kitchen sink. It got so bad that Danny asked some of the ghost leaders to send guards to help protect people in the more isolated areas around the world. This random ransacking was also happening in the ghost zone as well, but ghost lairs were far more difficult to attack and the Goons didn't seem to need ghostly items as desperately as real world items. Annoyed Tucker tried to map out some sort of pattern, hoping that they would be able to plan ahead of the attacks. The attacks however were happening all over the world and the items stolen in the attacks were so random and varied he could not find a discernible pattern even after slogging through mounds of data. This frustrated Team Phantom to the point of planning to do something reckless and stupid.

After numerous pitched battles against the Goons over several months Danny and his friends decided to take matters into their own hands. With Tuckers help they managed to get a tracker on a Goon and through it tracked a pack of Goons down. For once they were able to get ahead of a Goon attack and warned the people ahead of time while slipping Danni into the town unnoticed. When the Goons attacked Danni acted as bait allowing herself to be taken captive. Team Phantom even managed to protect the town from the worst of the Goons damage. They followed her for almost two weeks and nearly lost her twice. During those moments of lost contact Danny had nearly exposed them all in his desire to save and protect his little sister. Finally, they arrived at a mountain range near the Arctic Circle where the Goons base camp appeared to be. Realizing they had uncovered a massive operation of Dark Parmius and knowing Team Phantom couldn't handle a place this big on their own; Danny called in the yetis for reinforcements. They raided the place in a massive attack that took days and found only horrors within. It seemed that Vlad or Dark Parmius hadn't changed as much as they had thought. He had simply become more evil. The place was a massive lab full of experiments and it was there they discovered how the Goons were made.

Dark Parmius had clearly been experimenting with not only cloning but also recombinant ghostly creations. Danny had seen the result of this years before, when Vlad had experimented with his recombinant ghostly attack animals but Dark Parmius had now taken it to a whole new level. He was taking the humans he was stealing and fusing there life force with a ghostly construct. The ghostly constructs were made of any low level ghost that he was able to capture and deconstruct into a pure form of ectoplasm. This combination gave him a living puppet with no apparent free will and no mind whatsoever. He would program them to do as he bid before releasing his horrifying creations on the world to collect anything he desired. The lab was massive and more than once they were ambushed by things that had once been either human, ghost, or animal. In some cases it was hard for them to differentiate but one thing held true for all of them. Nome of the creations guarding the lab had a mind of there own, nor could they speak. It seemed to take forever but once all the enemies were cleared out Danny and his friends began to search for survivors and any information they could use against Dark Parmius. It was in this search that they discovered how Dark Parmius was powering such a huge outfit. Deep in the heart of the lab Danny had felt something calling to him. When he had followed the feeling he and the others had discovered the crown of fire which Vlad was using like a giant battery. They took the crown which was surrounded by a sphere of kind and though Danny tried multiple ways to break the strange material, it refused to be destroyed. They were all horrified by the monstrosities they found there and after rescuing all the humans left living and the ghosts left whole they began to destroy the lab from the inside out.

They didn't know if Dark Parmius had another Goon factory elsewhere in the realms but when they got home they told both realms what they had discovered in that lab. Before both realms were hesitant to work together but did simply because there was no other option. If anything this knowledge really united both realms against Dark Parmius and just barely in time. Dark Parmius had been using guerrilla tactics to attack people and places before the raid on his lab. While he had claimed several victories over time it wasn't enough for him and slowly he had started changing up his patterns of attack in an attempt to bring the worlds under his rule. However, both realms remained strong in the face of these new attacks especially since both the real world and the ghost zone showed no desire to come under his tyrannical rule. This drove him near to the point of madness and now with the strike against his precious lab Dark Parmius decided to show the world that he was either going to be its ruler or he would its destroyer. After all he didn't mind if he destroyed everything and everyone in the process. Dark Parmius finished his amassed army of Goons, recombinant beings, evils humans, as well as some ghosts whose ideals aligned with his own and finally they marched out on their first true strike.

Dark Parmius was infuriated that Danny and his useless friends or Team Phantom as they called themselves had destroyed his beautiful precious lab and taken the crown of fire. In retaliation he sent a large wave of his troops to attack Amity Park, home of the remaining halfas and the hero Danny Phantom. The battle was brutal and bloody but thanks to Danny along with his friends, both human and ghost they were able to save most of the innocent people who had simply called Amity home. The city however was practically leveled. After the massive first wave had been driven back government aid showed up to help those not fighting a safe evacuation route. Things quieted down into a tentative truce like state as Dark Parmiuses troops withdrawal to a mostly safe distance. Both sides licked their wounds and Danny found out that attacks like this were taking place all over the world. Human governments and many ghost groups were now fighting side by side against the madness known as Dark Plasmius. Pandora was in Greece, Undergrowth was in Brazil, many of the Yetis that were not helping Danny were in Russia, and other ghosts all over the world were doing their part as well. Danny and his friends felt a deep sense of pride knowing that the two realms were once again coming together and helping each other in a way that hadn't happened since the Disastroid. They had finally found common ground, even though it was horrible common ground wrought with misery and pain.


	4. Mentors and Monsters

**I dont have much to say today other than here is another chapter this week. Havent gotten much feedback so I hope everyone is enjoying my story! I forgot to put this in last time. Thanks Sophia the daughter of Nyx for the reviews!**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Rest is a hard thing to come by in a war and Team Phantom was grateful for any brief rest that they received. However, their rest never lasted as long as they wanted and this time was no exception either. Before Dark Parmius's forces resumed its attacks driving Team Phantoms forces back. Refusing to give up Danny and his friends continued to fight on as wave after wave of Darks Parmius forces washed over them slowly chipping their numbers down. Most of the world didn't realize it until later but Danny fought the war in both realms and his friends helped him in every way they could. As king of the ghost zone Danny had a duty to help protect the ghosts and their homes since Dark Parmius's attacks were not limited to the human world alone. He fought a two sided battle and since humans had a hard time fighting in the ghost zone it was initially a mostly ghostly army that fought those battles. Fenton tech and surprisingly the GIW slowly helped change that and the ghosts were thankful for the help. Months dragged on as the battles continued and eventually the war became known as the Merging War. Although no one truly realized how appropriate the title was until it was far too late. Valerie discovered she was pregnant and she and Tucker got married. Danny forced them off the front lines after that and though Tucker was initially upset he understood his friend decision and provided all the technological backup he could. He also started working on a suit like Valeries for both his own and other humans use in the war. Once the word was spread about Dark Parmius Goon factories large efforts were made to find and destroy any other labs of Dark Parmius. This was a concentrated effort to try and stem the flow of Goons and other ghastly creations that Dark Parmius seemed to enjoy sending out. Some were found then destroyed with extreme prejudice and several months passed before the tide slowly began to turn in Phantoms favor. As Dark Parmius creations were destroyed bit by bit he was forced to pull out of areas or face being annihilated outright. Soon Team Phantoms side were winning more battles than loosing them and for the first time since the start of the whole mess Danny felt that there was hope. Dark Parmius attacks started to become increasingly erratic and more brutal. Before he had been careful about the distribution of his creations as well as the terrain he was fighting in, now his attacks were less efficient, more destructive, and far more sacrificing.

Realizing the final battle was coming soon and still unable to break the barrier on the crown Danny went to see Clockwork. Clockwork had not participated in the war. In fact he and his lair had seemingly vanished after the war had begun. Danny had never had any trouble finding it but that was simply because Clockwork allowed him to find it. At first Danny had asked why Clockwork wouldn't help but he quickly realized that in his own way Clockwork had helped them on multiple occasions. He had given warnings and guidance when he could but unlike most ghosts his specialty prevented him from being able to directly participate much to Clockworks own frustration. Clockwork had welcomed Danny and had done his best to help break the barrier on the crown. However he was unable to and found it odd that the barrier felt like something that Plasmius had once used when he had been normal. There for the barrier should have been breakable for Danny and him as well, however he could just barely make out other ghostly signatures just below what felt like Plasmius power. With this disturbing new information he had asked Danny to wait and left to gaze into some of his clock windows. Clockwork gazed into his clocks for such a longtime after that Danny had almost left. When he was done Clockwork had returned to Danny and hugged him saying that it would be the last time they would see each other. Danny had been confused but Clockwork had simply stated that he was taking himself and his lair into the time stream itself. This would prevent any misdeeds from occurring from the misuse of his own powers. He warned Danny that a crossroads in time was coming and that not even he could predict the outcome. With that said he and the lair around him vanished leaving a stunned Danny floating alone in the zone with the crown.

Danny had returned to his friends with the crown and discovered in his absence tragedy had struck. His father had been killed and his mother was missing. Danny had lost it. He streaked away to where the battle was still taking place and simply let loose. His ghost allies fled at his arrival many of them sensing the sudden danger. Realizing their human counterparts couldn't, the ghosts on Dannys side dragged their human allies away from the danger that was their young king. For the first time Danny truly drew on the energy naturally available from the ring and the ghost zone and he wiped the opposing forces out of existence. When he was done he stood alone surrounded by nothing, the battlefield had been turned into a smear of dirt, blood, and ectoplasm. With nothing left around him Danny had finally returned to his senses. He took one look around him and transformed back into his human form before collapsing to the ground. Sam had found him there several hours later injured, unable to move, and sobbing, his tears falling to the churned up ghosts had prevented her from going to his side earlier for fear that she would get caught up in the rage and be injured or worse killed. They had forced Sam to wait until Dannys malevolent energy had completely dissipated from the battlefield before releasing her. They were relieved to let her go finally because it had taken several ghosts to detain her in the first place. Understanding his sorrow Sam had wrapped him in a hug and let him cry tears of her own mixing with his, simply relieved that he was alive. Sam healed Danny and once he found the energy to stand and shuffle they trekked back to where the others waited together. Two days passed as Danny regained his normal strength and he promised his friends he would never use the power of the ring and zone like he had ever again. After his complete loss of control many of the humans feared him and so did many of the ghosts. Danny hadn't blamed them, he was scared of himself. Danny also no longer cared if the crown was unshielded, for after his terrible lack of control he never intended to use it. Tucker heard what had happened and although his daughter was to be born soon he rushed over to be at Dannys side. On the fifth day after the battle Dark Parmius finally showed his face bringing with him a huge enemy force.

Dark Parmius had been avoiding Danny. He had shown up multiple times all over the world and had participated in many battles, but he had never stayed in one place for long. Certainly never long enough for Danny to track him down to fight him. He had been far more concerned with amassing power and other parts for his twisted master plan. The main part of his plan had been set into motion months ago, but just the day before Dark Parmius had finally gotten the last piece of information he needed before he was ready to take back his precious crown and ring that he felt were rightfully his. After all he felt he was the most powerful being in both realms, those two artifacts could only ever be his. Also the war was starting to go badly for him and he needed the crown to become the greatest ruler that either realm had ever known. So he had amassed his final force and marched to the ruins of Amity Park where everything had begun. In his arms he carried his trump card and as his army marched through the large semi natural portal he was stunned to find Danny and his force ready and waiting to do battle.


	5. Tragedy

**So I dropped a large heavy bottle of oxygen on my foot and busted it open. Thankfully I didn't break anything although I probably should have gotten stitches. Hurray for the weekend and a high pain tolerance! Now I have an excuse to sit on my bum with my foot in the air. Its kinda good news though because now I got some writing done. In any case this was a difficult chapter to write so get ready for some feels as they say. Enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Dark Parmius hung in the air before them; his army continuing to crowd behind him as others came out of the portal. When they filled the land and sky before Dannys army the flow of ghostly creatures, beings, and other things slowed to a trickle then stopped. With an imposing army facing him Dark Parmius decided to wait until his entire force was assembled before daring to speak. Once both sides settled the villain that had caused so much destruction opened his mouth, and with all the arrogance of a self assured fruitloop he addressed them.

"I am Dark Parmius and I have come to collect what is rightfully mine." He said his words booming over the silent armies. "You will surrender and give me the crown of fire and ring of rage. Do this and I will let you live as my slaves until the day your pitiful lives perish in the darkness. Otherwise I will destroy all of you and simply take what is rightfully mine."

As his words died off into the silence Team Phantom began to giggle. They simply couldn't help it and in the next few moments all the beings in Danny's army were laughing outright.

"You suck at giving demands and your name still sounds like old cheese! We will never surrender you crazed up fruitloop!" Danny crowed his friends and army laughing all the harder at Dark Parmius.

At this slight Dark Parmius became utterly enraged a dark aura surrounding him as his minions cautiously backed away. Lightning flashed in the swiftly clouding sky and as the sudden light faded Danny saw clenched in one of Dark Parmius's massive hands was his mother. She dangled limp by her wrist and a shocked silence again descended upon the armies. A roar of rage tore its way out of Danny throat as he recovered from his shock and he leapt to the air only to be stopped by Sam. She wrapped her arms around him barely able to restrain him and begged him to calm down. Dark Parmius watched this interaction with an amused smirk playing across his lips.

"I see I once again have your attention." Dark Parmius snarled "I will have the crown and in return I will give you her." Dark Parmius tossed Maddie Fenton to a Goon who caught her then moved forward slightly.

Danny was just barely kept under control at this show of indifference and Sam drug him back down to the ground with Frostbites help as Tucker went to fetch the crown. Tense minutes passed as Danny regained his cool and he thanked his friends and two sisters for helping calm him back down. He was still infuriated and as soon as Tucker arrived with the crown he leapt into the air with it, Sam following swiftly behind. Dark Parmius along with the Goon holding his mom began to move forward as they did and while they hadn't arranged it before hand they met in the open space between the two armies. There wasn't much space between them and as they floated there in silence Danny found that could feel and see the evil aura emanating from Dark Parmius. Sam could as well and after a moment he could practically feel her annoyance the air around her starting to take on a slightly greenish tinge. Realizing what she was doing and understanding that Dark Parmius was foolishly trying to intimidate them, Danny allowed his own aura and power to enter the visible spectrum. Dark Parmius flinched at this show of their strength the green and blue white auras easily overwhelming his own evil aura. The Goon beside him also trembled its weak aura overwhelmed to the point that was in danger of dissolving from the pressure. Infuriated by this turn of events and clearly annoyed at his own reaction Dark Parmius spoke before Danny could.

"The crown first." Dark Parmius snapped and Danny shook his head.

"At the same time or else, your Goon hands Sam my mom as I hand you the crown." Danny answered his voice dangerous.

Dark Parmius laughed and pretending to not be the least bit intimidated he waved his hand at the Goon who flew forward as Danny did. They passed midair and it took all of Dannys self control to not attack the Goon and simply take his mother from its twisted form. Danny stopped before Dark Parmius arms outstretched realizing once again how much bigger Dark Parmius was compared to him. Dark Parmius reached out his eyes fixated on the crown and the clear protection on it turned a blood red before floating out of his hands and into Dark Parmius.

"Ah yes my precious crown your finally where you belong." Dark Parmius practically cooed as the barrier around the crown flashed brighter his aura glowing brighter as well. Danny began to ease back not wanting to take his eyes off Dark Parmius as he waited for Sam to give him the signal. Sam on the other hand watched the Goon stop mere inches from her its facial features slack and its form flickering slightly. Hurriedly she put out her arms worried the Goon would drop Maddie completely. The Goon dissolved the moment it handed Maddie over unable to take the overwhelming auras any longer. The moment she hit Sams arms she activated her healing power calling "Safe!" Danny sped back to her side grabbing her and his mother before rushing them back to the safety of his army leaving Dark Parmius to do his My Precious act on his own. Sam's hands glowed the entire time not faltering even as they touched down to be surrounded by family and friends.

Maddies eyes fluttered open to see Sam crying silently as she tried to heal the damage done to her body. Danny was on her other side now in his human form holding her hand and her head was in Jazzes lap. Tucker and Danni looked on, as well as dozens of other friendly faces both human and ghostly.

"Sweetheart stop you know it's much too late for that. You're just wasting energy you will need later." Maddie said her voice soft but understandable. Sam nodded the effort to keep from sobbing out loud enough to make it seem like she was in pain herself. As she nodded the glow in her hands faded slowly to a dull gleam but she kept up enough of her power so that Maddie wasn't in any pain.

"Mom no you can pull through this right?" Danni cried dropping down beside Danny who sat holding her hand tight as tears ran down his face.

"I'm sorry sweetheart but I'm afraid not, I'm going to go join your father." She answered much to everyone's horror. "Yes, I know he's gone on I could feel it the moment he died. I suppose that's what happens when your heart and soul belong in part to another. Before I go however, I need to tell you something. Dark Parmius is no longer half human he is a full ghost. I don't know how but that monster is in no way Vlad, at least not anymore. He's built something that he claims will allow him to rule both realms. Its where he originally became a half ghost at our old school. You must stop him for the sake of both worlds." Silence descended as no one knew what to say in there shocked state.

Maddie smiled up at them all. "I love you all. I'm sorry we didn't get more time together." Her voice was growing softer, weaker and Sams hands glowed a little brighter "I can't hold her much longer." Sam choked in warning tears starting to fall again though she desperately tried to hold them back.

Jazz smoothed the hair from her mother's face "Say hi to dad for me and tell him we love him and will miss you both ok?"

"You were the greatest kick butt surrogate mom ever, even if your meatloaf sometimes had ectoplasm in it." Tucker said "I wish my little Vivi could have met you. The baby's a girl by the way I never did get a chance to tell you."

"Thank you for all you did after my parents died, you are my other mother and I love you." Sam said her voice cracking and a small sob leaking through "Say hi to my parents for me?"

"You took me in, taught me how to be a good person, taught me to love, and taught me how to fight. You have always been my mom from the start and I don't want you to go!" Danni cried sobbing as she hugged Maddie as gently as she could.

Maddie who now had tears slowly leaking down her face managed to wrap an arm around her and looked to her son.

"I didn't get to say goodbye to dad and I wasn't able to protect you. I'm so sorry mom." Danny managed his voice breaking before he could continue.

Maddie lifted her hand from his and managed to stroke his cheek once before losing the strength to do so again. Danny caught her hand before it fell too far and pressed it once again to his cheek.

"Never…apologize." Maddie managed smiling "It's a parent's job to protect their children and I am so very proud of you all. Tucker Vivi is a beautiful name and I'm so glad you came into our lives Danni. We had always wanted another daughter. We will miss you too Jazz and I promise to pass your message along Sam. I love you all so much." Her voice was barely a whisper at this point and her eyes fluttered even as she tried to keep them open.

"You never gave upon me." Danny whispered finding his voice again as he squeezed his moms hand gently. "You never turned away even when you discovered what I was. You were proud and you never stopped loving me. You will not be forgotten mom. I will carry on your love and name till the day I die. It's ok to rest now, we will take it from here." Dannys voice carried a kind of strength in his words even as a fresh set of tears cascaded down his cheeks. A wordless cheer rose from the throats of the ghost and humans surrounding them rolling over the silent, soon to be battlefield. Maddies chest rose once more and fell, a happy sigh escaping her lips as she smiled for the last time. They all sat there for a few moments longer only sobs breaking the silence that had descended once again. Danny gently placed his moms limp hand on her chest and lifted Danni into his arms hugging her tight. Jazz joined them and moments later so did Tucker and Sam. Someone in the crowd brought a length of cloth forward and Frostbite took it gently placing it over Maddies body. Slowly the sobs petered out and the group came apart as Danny stood facing the direction where Dark Parmius hovered before his army, his hands stroking the crown as the last of his placed barrier dissolved.

"I'll take her back to camp." Jazz said as she dropped to her knees to tuck the sheet around Maddies still form.

"I'll help." Tucker said and placed a hand on Dannys shoulder as he nodded towards Dark Parmius. "Go kick his ass."

Danny rose to his full height and wiped the tears from his cheeks. "Lets end this." he whispered as rings of light surrounded him, transforming into his ghost form. Sam and Danni echoed his movements and as one they leapt into the air yelling "Attack!"


	6. Battles End

**I am recovering and I can wear normal shoes. Foot still hurts but high pain tolerance and all... in any case enjoy the fighting!**

 **War is hell, but I think cleaning up after one would be just as bad.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

The three of them sped directly for Dark Parmius who had at this point reverently placed the crown upon his head. He finally seemed to notice them and the army rapidly approaching but he didn't even seem concerned. Turning to look at his army behind him he simply yelled "Destroy them all!"

He turned his back ignoring the three halfas and their pitiful show of force, his army would swamp them and crush them before their main force could catch up. The thought made him laugh and he turned back around wanting to see their hopelessness as they were destroyed. His army rushed past him careful not to run into him and as he hung there in the air he realized his mistake. The three halfa children were charging right at him and the swirling energy surrounding them kept any attacks from reaching their bodies. They attacked as one and Dark Parmius was forced to create a shield to keep the powerful attacks from obliterating himself. To Dark Parmius shock their attack was far stronger than he could have imagined and his shield was just barely strong enough to protect him. The shield cracked and the halfas pressed forward the flow of energy between them forcing any would be attacker to think twice before trying to get in the middle of this battle. Their attacks shattered the shield a moment later knocking him back and Dark Parmius could see that the rest of Team Phantoms army had already caught up making reinforcements a real possibility. Dark Parmius decided for the moment it would be far safer at the back of his army. As he thought about the best way to go about this he returned fire the main energy shield covering Team phantom dissolving into separate shields to make themselves less of a target.

Suddenly he heard a cry of "MY KING!" and he knew his distraction had arrived. Danny, Sam, and Danni had to drop their shields momentarily to attack him as one and as they were about to launch a second coordinated assault a blast of purple ectoenergy struck Danni knocking her sideways.

"I got her!" Sam cried throwing a shield around them both as she caught her. Danni stirred as the one who blasted her shimmered into view. It was Fright Night and he raised his arms and sword once again purple energy swiftly building on his hand. Danny turned on a dime diving towards them and Dark Parmius started backing away quickly clearly not wanting to have to fight a fair fight.

"Danny get Dark Parmius we can handle this idiot!" Sam yelled up to him and Danny hovered for a moment as if making a decision then nodded once before speeding after Dark Parmius who was trying to retreat within his army.

Danny knew it was a bad idea to follow. He would be utterly surrounded by enemies with no real escape. However at this point Danny found he didn't care. Dark Parmius had killed his mom and his twisted creations had killed his father. There was no way Danny could let him escape. Goons and other experiments came at him from all sides and Danny felt the rage within him building as Dark Parmius gained more distance. Suddenly Dark Parmius stopped, his minions rushing past him as they headed for Danny ready and willing to destroy anything that their master ordered them to. A warm happiness seemed to fill Dark Parmius as he hung there, watching as Danny struggled to fight off the goons and other monstrosities. Dark Parmius couldn't help himself as he locked eyes with the young halfa and simply smiled. It was a smile that said I've won and there is nothing you can do about it. Danny snapped and throwing all caution to the wind he let loose his ghostly wail. The constructs, Goons, and ghostly mishaps before him shredded like confetti and the outer edges of his wail slammed into Dark Parmius disorienting the evil ghost.

Ignoring the recoil of using so much power at once Danny launched himself forward forming a fist coated with ghost ice and ecto energy. Before Dark Parmius could fully recover Dannys fist slammed into his face a second fist slamming solidly into his chest. Dark Parmius was blasted earthwards the blows knocking the crown loose from its perch on top his head. He smashed into then through several layers of rock creating a massive crater and shock wave. Dark Parmius army ignored his, sheer self preservation making them leave a wide ring of empty space. Danny floated in this space just above where Dark Parmius laid in the crater trying to recover some semblance of an upright position. Holding the crown of fire in his grip Danny grimaced. He had managed to catch it as it flew off Dark Parmius's head and now that it was in his grasp Danny wasn't sure if he wanted the crown. He could feel a twisted power pulsing through it and the ring of rage. It seemed to whisper to him to put it on, all he had to do was put it on. He could end the battle in seconds without any more casualties. He could kill Dark Parmius easy with this power, take revenge for every wrong thing the fool had done in the past few years. It was tempting, so very tempting, but at the thoughts of all the things he could ran through his mind in tempting him Danny felt another pulse of twisted energy come from the crown. Danny fought against it because it was an energy that delighted in the dark thoughts and suddenly the crowns energy reminded him of Dan. This was a moment where he could become just like him and with that thought fighting the others all Danny felt for the crown was disgust. As it was the crown was too powerful, too twisted from being exposed to Dark Parmius to wear in the state he was in, however Danny knew he couldn't let it or the ring fall into Dark Parmius hands. Already Dark Parmius had recovered and was climbing to his feet his face a mask of murder as he gazed at Danny holding the crown above him. Danny knew that if Dark Parmius attacked him now he wouldn't have a choice but to put on the crown to prevent Dark Parmius from getting it. He was the legitimate king of the ghost zone and he had a feeling that the moment he did, the crown and rings combined power would overwhelm him and at best he would loose control. If he lost control now Danny knew it would make his loss of control at the battle several days ago, look like a child's tantrum. He needed another angle, some way to separate the crown and ring to make sure that neither fell into Dark Parmius's hands. As the thought finished Danny realized what he needed to do in an instant, and refusing to try and think it all the way through, he gripped both sides of the crown hard slamming his ghostly energy through it. The crown seemed to cry out at this treatment but Danny was its ruler and the crown responded to his wishes by snapping in half.

"NOOOOO" Dark Parmius shrieked leaping to the air but Danny wasn't yet done.

The two pieces of the crown and the ring on Dannys finger began to glow, swiftly becoming a white hot glare that rivaled the sun. The mini sun rose from Dannys hands climbing just above the chaos of the battle where it seemed to get even brighter for a brief moment before vanishing altogether a large boom accompanying its disappearance. Danny blinked rapidly as he tried to make the spots in his vision go away. He was glad to be rid of the overwhelming aura of the crown although he would miss the ring. He didn't get the chance to relax however for in the next instant Dark Parmius's hands were around his throat choking him as Dark Parmius screamed "What have you DONE!"

Danny was unable to reply as they began to fall rapidly speeding for the ground as Dark Parmius roared "I'm going to kill you for this!"

In desperation Danny fired a blast of his ghost ice powers into Dark Parmius's face blinding him for a brief moment. As Dark Parmius hands instinctively went for his face Danny phased out of his grip and managed to slow himself before crashing to the ground. Dark Parmius hit far harder and Danny managed to climb to his feet first. He was injured and almost out of power with the stunts he had pulled but Danny refused to give up as he began to stumble towards where Dark Parmius was attempting to rise to his feet.

"Danny!" two female voices cried as Sam and Danni flew at him. Dark Parmius managed to gain his feet looking a complete wreck. His hair was frazzled, his clothes torn, and ice still partially covered his face near his right eye. Gashes form the sharp rocks and Dannys power oozed ectoplasm and he simply reached up and tore the ice from his face growling hoarsely as it tore the skin around his eye off with it.

"Give it up Dark Parmius. You have lost. The crown and ring will never be yours. I've sent them to places that only I can find and lets face it you will never be king. It is time to pay for the things that you have done." Danny said as Sam and Danni landed to either side of him reaching out to him as he stumbled.

Dark Parmius growled again the sound so evil and primal Danny put his hands up before Sam and Danni to protect them in case he attacked.

After a moment Dark Parmius spoke practically spitting his words at the three of them. "If I can't be king then no one shall be. I'll see these realms destroyed before I bow to you!"

Dark Parmius then formed a massive plasma ball from his remaining energy and launched it at the three of them. The three halfas threw everything they practically had left into a massive shield that covered their three bodies. The two energies collided and for a long moment there was only light and thunderous noise. Danny tackled Sam and Danni as he felt the shield began to give and then in the next instant he found himself sprawled out on the ground who knows how much later with Sam bending over him. She was healing him he knew and he tried to sit up worried about both her and Danni. Sam forced him back down before he could get far his injuries protesting the movement, which was funny because he didn't even remember getting injured.

"Danni is fine and so am I, it's time to rest now." She mouthed although she could have been speaking. Danny couldn't hear anything and as her ghostly healing energy stole through him Danny found himself unable to fight off the exhaustion that swamped him. Sam healed him as best as she could at the moment Danni was shielding all three of them and she needed help. Sam stood making her way too her and realized Danni was injured as well. Swiftly she placed her hands on Danni sending her healing energy through her the shield around them brightened and Sam knew that they would be able to hold out until help came. She pushed more energy into Danni to help feed the shield and all at once realized she had pushed herself too far. On the edges of her vision she saw a group of yetis coming for them as she fell to her knees. The shield dulled and Danni whimpered falling to her knees Sam wrapped her arms around her and threw her own shield around them as Dannis faded out her power exhausted for the moment. Danni slumped against her unconscious and Sam could feel her control slipping. The shield flickered and their attackers drew closer sensing the end was near.

"Any time now!" Sam managed to yell her voice barely heard over the clamor of the battle. A moment later a mixed group of fighters arrived swiftly disposing of the attackers and forming a circle around them to protect them. A Yeti dropped to her side awaiting her command.

"Take the Phantoms they are both injured." Sam managed and then the world spun before fading out to black


	7. Recovery

**Hmmm I was going to update this yesterday but I went bowling and forgot...oops... In any case this is sorta filler but yay for Danny Sam cuteness! Enjoy!**

 **Weep not in memory of those lost. For as long as you remember they are never far away.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Sam awakened at the field hospital feeling like crap. She had overreached herself and knew better than to try and move around. However, Sam knew she didn't have the luxury of sitting around waiting for her body to replenish its energy, she couldn't feel Danny nearby and that worried her. She and Danny had always had a very close bond from the moment they met. When she had turned half ghost the bond had deepened and at this point she could tell how Danny was and sometimes even pick up ideas off him. He was much better at using the bond they had and could literally read her mind when he felt like it. He didn't do it often though because it made Sam feel self conscious. Right now however Sam had a feeling she needed to get to him and after the way the battle had turned out, before she passed out at least, he would need her as well. Besides she wanted to be near him, wanted to be held by him and she knew instinctively that when he woke up Danny would feel the same way about her, as well as guilt for everything that had happened at the battle. These thoughts drove her from her bed like cot moments after awakening. A Yeti caught her as she stumbled forward dizzily, the voice growling something incoherent. Sam looked up at them blearily. "What?" she asked and frowned as she realized that her hearing was muffled. She turned her greatly depleted healing energy inwards checking herself out and found her one eardrum had burst and the other was damaged. The Yeti moved her backwards forcing her to sit and Sam allowed it as her concentration was being used up on healing herself. Several minutes later Sam stood again and found that the dizziness had mostly passed with the total healing of her ear drums. Now that she could hear properly, the sounds of whimpers and groans filled the canvas walls around her.

The Yeti had not left and it stood before her hands on its hips its teeth bared in an unhappy grimace. To an average person this sight probably would have been terrifying. Sam however was used to it, they had often gone to the far frozen to get both her own injuries as well as Dannys patched up after particularly nasty ghost fighting battles. They never rested as long as they should have and the medical Yetis almost always scowled at them even when they were not injured.

"Where is Danny?" Sam asked eyeing the half full medical tent where groans and whimpers echoed around, the sound already grating on Sams nerves.

The Yeti huffed "The Great One was brought to a human medical establishment." It sneered slightly and Sam understood and empathized its feelings. Sam pinched the bridge of her nose as she strived to not shout how stupid of an idea that was. The Yetis were a far better choice in a halfas case, they had been patching Danny and her up for years now.

"Do I want to know?" Sam asked and the Yeti shook its head.

"The Great One is stable and his blood sister is awake."

"Thank you." Sam said and started to move forward but the Yeti moved so that it was in her way.

"You have not fully recovered." The Yeti said its voice concerned

"I won't get into any fights. I can recover as I talk to Jazz." Sam grumbled but in truth she was already feeling drained. Healing her ears had taken a lot of her meager strength, delicate healings always did. She swayed but stubbornly stayed upright refusing to sit back down. The Yeti grumbled but there was a hint of pride in its eyes as it gazed at her.

"I shall take you." It said and before Sam could say a word it scooped her up like a child and strode off towards the exit. Sam yipped in surprise and for a moment thought of phasing through the yeti to try walking on her own because in truth she hated to be carried by anyone but Danny. She then decided that it was a bad idea and focused on staying warm in the yetis arms.

"You would think you guys would be warm with all that fur." Sam grumbled the natural icy chill radiating from the yeti making her sleepy.

The yeti bared its fangs in a smile and kept walking as Sam unintentionally slipped back to sleep.

Sam woke up in Team Phantoms tent. She was still tired but feeling much better than she had before. Sitting up Sam braced herself for any dizziness or pain but was pleasantly surprised when none hit.

Jazz sat on the ground in the center of the tent looking down at a much abused pink scrapbook, silently flipping through pages and brushing her fingertips over pictures of her parents.

"You should get some more sleep though Danny should be waking up soon. You will need to go get him before he causes trouble." Jazz said her voice soft.

Sam could feel the emotional and even some physical pain radiating off of Jazz it was practically a slap in the face. Sam had discovered she was very much in tune with emotional energies, she had found it to be a side effect of her healing and half ghost nature. Most of the time she turned emotional energy out, after all no one liked people snooping on their innermost feelings. Jazz however was different and she would have had to be blind, deaf, and dumb to not be able to tell how much emotional pain she was in. Slipping to the floor Sam wrapped her arms around Jazz.

"I'm sorry Jazz." Sam whispered knowing that while the words would mean little she could help ease the emotional energy by giving Jazz something to focus on as she worked on her field.

Besides she knew exactly what Jazz was feeling, she had felt it herself when her parents had been killed. Jazz returned the hug and let Sam help ease the anger sadness and helplessness that was weighing her down. When Sam was done Jazz felt better less like a emotional rock and more like a human. Tears formed in her eyes and moments later she started to sob into Sams arms. Sam hated crying but safe in the confies of the tent she let her own tears flow and together they cried on the floor Tucker joining the hugging cry fest a few minutes later. Surprisingly even Sam felt better when she was all cried out and she could tell that her other two family members were as well. They were all silent for a long moment then Sam asked "Why was Danny brought to the hospital?"

Jazz sighed wiping her face dry before blowing her nose "He was unstable and we didn't have all the equipment need here though the Yetis were adamant he would be ok here in the medical tent. You had already healed the worst of his and Dannis wounds before you passed out yourself. However with all the other injured people and ghosts some idiot decided that the hospital wasn't the worst place he could be. At the time I was… busy and they didn't ask my opinion, plus the battle was still going on. Danny is fine though, I checked on him earlier today and he was still out cold. He will probably be awake by tomorrow morning the way he is. I know you want to go see him Sam but you still need more rest yourself. We all do."

Sam had wanted to go to Danny right away but realized that Jazz was right. Healing her own ears had made her pass out although she was blaming the Yetis cold core on that one. Helping heal Jazzes emotional state had given her a bit of energy indirectly but if she were being honest Sam still felt wiped. Danny was safe in the hospital and if she was going to get him out tomorrow she would have to have enough energy to at least go ghost and fly there which meant more rest. With a groan she stood and went to her cot curling up on the blankets. She would go to Danny in the morning regardless of her energy level and she would bring him back even if she had to carry him out of the hospital.

He didn't know how long he slept but when he finally woke up he was in a hospital room hooked up to machines that beeped and whirled. Danny sat up wincing as newly healed bones and muscles protested being moved again. He was sore and he could see barely healed cuts across his skin.

"Less than a day then." Danny whispered and threw the covers off himself to get out of the bed. He felt weak but he ignored it and the pain as he turned intangible, causing all the leads and devices to fall off his body. Alarms beeped from just about every machine in the room and moments later the door burst open a nurse and Sam rushing inside.

"Hey I'm awake now, where are my clothes?" Danny said feeling slightly embarrassed by the fact that all he had on was a pair of boxers and a hospital gown.

Sam sighed at the look on his face and tossed him a small pack that had a change of clothes in it. She knew that look and she knew that nothing would stop him from going after Dark Parmius even in the state he was in. Danny swiftly began to change into the clothes trying hard not to blush.

"Phantom…er… Danny sir you were badly injured we still need to do some tests…" the nurse said stuttering slightly.

Danny paused his shirt already half way on. "I don't have time for tests. Sam healed me most of the way and I am sure I'll be 100 percent soon enough. I heal a lot faster than humans." He said muttering the last part as he pulled the shirt down into place. "Why am I here anyways?"

Sam sighed "You over reached yourself." She clenched her hand and ignoring the sputtering nurse, they walked out of the room. "We all overreached ourselves apparently. I managed to heal the worst of your wounds before passing out and Danni protected us with a shield until Frostbite and some of the others got to us. Danni is still out even though she wasn't as badly injured as you were. I was out for a full day and you have been out for two."

At her words Danny froze mid step. "Two days?! But my wounds… the scratches and stuff should be way healed if I've been out that long!" Danny exclaimed.

"Shhhh! This is a hospital you dope." Sam hissed and pulled him forward into the stair well as the nurse who had just come from the room ran to the nurses' station. "I told you. You were badly injured. You could have fully died as a matter of fact which is why you ended up here. Danni and I were at the field hospital but you were not stable and they were not able to ask any one else's opinion so they brought you up here. We knew you we going to wake up soon so Jazz told me to get you out before you caused any trouble. I actually have already signed the paperwork to get you out but that stupid nurse was giving me trouble."

Danny sighed rubbing a hand over his face. "How did the battle go? I assume it's not still raging?"

Sam echoed his sigh "We won. We had more casualties but after Dark Parmius tried to kill us with that blast he vanished. His warriors at least the human ones fell to pieces. We captured a bunch of them, but most are straight up crazy or have been experimented on to the point that I'm not even sure if we could call them human. All the Goons and other monstrosities have been destroyed. Funerals for the fallen are set for two days from now. Although your mom…" Sam trailed off unsure of what to say. Danny had a look of pain on his face that echoed the pain in her own heart. She reached out to enfold Danny in a hug and he clung to her shaking slightly. They stood there for several minutes in silence as Danny ceased shaking and then with a deep shuddering breath Danny let Sam go wiping his eyes as he took a short step back. No words were needed between them and together they transformed and flew out of the hospital to go back to where the army had their base. By the time they got there Danni had awakened as well and they had a late lunch together in one of the tents meant for Team Phantom. They had a lot to discuss and a lot of reports to go through.

Dark Parmius had once again vanished but Danny felt that it wouldn't last long. Remembering the way he had looked when Danny broke the crown had made Danny realize that until they could capture him or at this point even kill him he would not be stopped. They decided to go after him and what they assumed was a weapon that Maddie had told them about before dying. Decision made they chose to wait two more days to allow them to regain strength and most importantly attend Danny's parents funeral.

The days passed quickly and the funerals were sad affairs. They all cried as the names of the fallen were read. The ghosts didn't have any bodies to bury but they were erecting a monument where the battle took place that would have the names of everyone who died out on the battlefield. Like many other humans Team Phantom were going to have a private funeral for Dannys fallen parents but so many people and ghosts wanted to attend they had to have it in the same area as the main one. At long last the day was over and every one on team phantom was exhausted. Danny fell asleep almost instantly when they got back to the tents and the others followed suit.

He woke up in the early morning before dawn with Sams arms wrapped around him. He had been having unsettling dreams all night and now he knew he wouldn't go back to sleep. Everything was packed for the hunt of Dark Parmius and as he started to get up he realized that the tent was empty.

"Were you were having nightmares?" Sam asked from behind him softly

Danny turned towards her gently stroking some hair from her cheek. "Not nightmares but not happy dreams either. They were just unsettling, like memories that I couldn't quite place."

Sam pushed herself upright and wrapped her arms around him. "I know what you mean. When my parents died it was the same way for me too... sometimes I still dream of them." She whispered

Danny returned the hug and kissed her gently knowing that no words were needed. They stayed like that for several minutes drawing comfort from each others arms.

"Danny Sam are you two awake?" a voice asked and they broke apart to see Danni floating at the end of the cot. Now that he was fully awake Danny could hear soft voices coming from just beyond the tent walls.

"No Danni we are sleep hugging. Would you like a sleep hug too?" Danny asked and before he could finish Danni slammed into him and Sam sobbing. Danny and Sam wrapped their arms around her letting her cry. After a few minutes Tucker and Jazz joined them in the tent and they waited till Danni calmed down. Danni fell asleep in Dannys lap much to their amusement and for a few minutes they quietly discussed whether they should leave her at the base or not. She had seen way more than a little girl her age should have seen including the Goon factories and she was fighting in a war, when she probably shouldn't have any part of it. In the end they figured if they didn't take her she would figure out a way to track them down and get to them no matter how far they went. Danni had an uncanny ability to find the people she was close to. In fact it was impossible to play hide and seek with the girl even though that was her favorite game. Danny wiped a small tear from Dannis face and sighed accepting that the safest thing to do was bring her along.

With the discussion about the youngest member of their group finished Tucker began to tell them all the info he had gathered on the old college that Maddie had attended. The school was in a decently secluded area and when the Merging War had started the school had been partially destroyed in one of the first wave battles then shut down. In other words it was the perfect place for Dark Parmius to hide something and if anyone accidently came across the school it was far enough away from any civilization that no one would hear them scream. They all just hoped it wasn't another one of Dark Parmius' labs. Since everyone was awake and present they decided to leave under the cover of darkness when almost everyone else on the base was sleeping. If they tried to leave in the day time they would undoubtedly be seen by someone since many of the soldiers were still in the base, if they were seen leaving there would be questions that Team Phantom didn't want to answer. Slipping out was easy and they had no trouble taking the Fenton jet even when Danny carried Danni into the jet before setting off for Dark Parmius newest stronghold.


	8. Discovery

**Its going to be a rough week this week so I am updating early because it may take me a few days to update again. In any case wouldnt mind a review so I know how I am doing. I like my story but then it came from my twisted mind... How do you like it?**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

They decided to work in teams of two and since Danny was the strongest he could search on his own if they had to split up. Tucker and Sam were one team with Jazz and Danni being the other. That way all teams had a halfa with them and they joked how it was just like old times before the Disastroid. They arrived in the late afternoon and landed with no issues several miles from the school.

"It's quiet, too quiet." Tucker said as soon as they got out into the woods.

Everyone snorted and Sam swatted the back of his head

"Owww Sam, what was that for?" Tucker annoyingly whined clutching the back of his skull like she had hit him far harder than she really had.

"If Valerie was here she would have done the same thing so stop whining." Sam answered but she had to hide her grin. Tucker had broken the tension helping them all relax but they were still on high alert because there was an odd feeling in the air and as Tucker had pointed out it really was far too quiet in the woods. There were no animal sounds only the wind as it blew through the trees. There weren't even any insect noises which was more than unsettling. They traveled quickly through the trees arriving at a partially broken down wall that was the start of the campus.

"So how do we want to do this?" Danny asked as they huddled in the fringes of the trees the broken down wall between them and the school. Once they passed the broken wall they had a couple hundred feet of open ground before they got to the main building.

"We should stick together I think. We don't know what Dark Parmius has in here and I think we will be safer as a large group." Sam said and everyone agreed

"Sams right we don't know what's in store for us here but if anyone sees something that looks like a computer or anything let me know and I can find out." Tucker said flashing a PDA shaped piece of tech that was actually far ahead of what normal technology was.

"You guys should probably transform in case we run into enemies. Plus I think we should phase through the main wall once we get to it." Jazz said and Danny nodded.

Danny and Sam changed into their ghost self's then looked over at Danni who had been strangely quiet since they had arrived at the forests edge. She also hadn't transformed yet, instead she was looking over at the building an intense look on her face clearly unaware of what they were talking about.

"Danni what's wrong?" Danny asked gently touching her shoulder.

Danni shuddered coming out of whatever state she had been in. "Vlads in there somewhere. I can almost… sense him."

"You mean Dark Parmius?" Jazz asked and Danni shook her head

"No its Vlad I'm sensing." She paused for a second and looked up at them fear crossing her features. "Dark Parmius and Vlad are no longer the same remember? Mom even told us. I can lead us to Vlad though."

The others didn't question her although they were still a little confused by her words.

"Well at least we have some sort of plan now rather than simply wandering around until we get caught. Danni lead us to Vlad and we will figure out what to do after we get to him." Danny said with a smile.

Danni nodded transforming and floating up to the wall that separated them from the school. As a group they moved across the open space and pressed up against the building expecting an attack at any moment. Danny stuck his head through the wall to check if the coast was clear and after a moment he waved everyone forward with Sam turning Jazz and Tucker intangible to get through the wall. Danni took the lead as she led them deeper into the school. They ran into nothing as they traveled although the feeling of wrongness they had all sensed in the woods seemed to be growing stronger. Changes had been made to the building inside, changes they couldn't ignore the deeper they went. A strange material that looked like metal covered much of the walls and ceiling. Pipes and electronics also ran everywhere and in some places walls were missing to show bits and pieces of machines in their place. Tucker was going nuts over the tech he didn't recognize and Danny practically had to drag him along as they followed Danni. Finally after following Danni for nearly 30 minutes they arrived at a door. It was a solid metal door and there was no handle on it. In fact the door was welded solidly into the wall.

"He is in there." Danni whispered looking around them nervously. Tucker moved forward pulling out his PDA and started typing on it. A beam briefly shined on the door and then moments later he sighed.

"There is a human in there and I can't find any traps on the door or in the room so I think it's safe. You may want to stay invisible in case there are cameras." Tucker paused for a second looking around them as nervously as Danni had done. "Actually scratch that it doesn't matter if there are cameras. I have a feeling that Dark Parmius already knows we are here."

"Oh I'm pretty sure he knows we are here I'm just wondering why we haven't been attacked yet." Danny said as the others looked at him shocked. He shrugged "I'm pretty sure that Dark Parmius has claimed this place as a pseudo lair. I think that's why it feels so wrong and it also explains why we couldn't find him anywhere. I'm going to grab Vlad and hopefully I'll be right back with him alive."

Danny turned intangible and poked his head into the door. The room was a box and maybe a total of 7 feet across with no furniture at all. There was a pillow in the corner and a blanket lay on the floor under the only other thing in the room. A barefoot man in shredded clothes lay on his side facing the wall. He had white hair that was more mussed than straight and a very solemn air hung about him. Danny moved fully into the room reaching out towards Vlad. At the last moment Danny stopped inches away and took a step back thinking it better to call to him rather than shaking him.

"Vlad? Are you alive?" Danny asked

Vlad sprang from the floor spinning round and closing his hands around Dannys throat. Dannys back hit the wall as he backed up and he turned his neck intangible to release Vlad s grip before grabbing his arms. Vlads eyes were wide, bloodshot, and crazed looking. With a shudder Danny realized Vlad looked like his other version from Dans future just before he had ripped the time medallion from his body. Then as Danny struggled not to hurt the thrashing Vlad he realized that he was now almost as old as Dan was in that other future. Those thoughts freaked him out and he shoved Vlad away from him sending him crashing to the floor. Danny panted harshly as the faintest feelings of a panic attack started and he pressed his hands against the smooth metal wall so hard they dented. The sound of squealing metal helped ground him and Danny sank to the floor watching Vlads chest slowly rise and fall. Vlad simply lay where he landed unmoving and for a moment Danny worried that he had been knocked unconscious. Knowing he had the time Danny took several breaths fully calming himself back down before climbing to his feet.

"Vlad?" Danny questioned. Vlad twitched and let out a long deep breath but still didn't answer. Danny didn't want to get any closer in case he attacked again so he settled with asking "Are you ok? I didn't mean to shove you so hard. You just surprised me and…"

"Don't apologize little badger." Vlad answered interrupting him. His demeanor completely and suddenly calm, he sat up crossing his legs Indian style as he looked Danny over. "The look you gave me was more than surprise though. It was closer to a look of horror though you clearly knew it was me in here. In any case you've grown my boy."

Danny felt an old familiar annoyance at Vlads chummy words but he could also hear his exhaustion and sorrow comingling in his normally arrogant tone. Choosing to ignore Vlads hinted question Danny hid his worry and confusion by holding a hand out to Vlad.

"I need answers Vlad. Answers I am very sure only you can give me. So how about we get out of this room and then we will talk."

Vlad took Dannys hand and stood with his help. From the moment Vlad touched him when he attacked, Danny had sensed the difference in him. It was the other reason he had looked at Vlad in horror. Vlad was no longer a half ghost. His heartbeat and breathing were like a normal humans and his skin wasn't as cool as a halfas would be. He also felt far weaker. Danny could have easily broken Vlads grip on his neck but Vlad felt strangely fragile to him and Danny really had been worried about hurting him. Practically holding Vlad up Danny phased both of them back through the welded door. As soon as Danny released him Vlad slumped to the floor in the hallway.

"Um I don't really think we should talk here." Danny said eyeing Vlad as he leaned against the wall secretly glad to not be in contact with him anymore, though he immediately felt guilty for the thought.

Tucker and Sam stared at Vlad with shocked expressions and Danni hid slightly behind Jazz. None of them had ever seen Vlad in this sorry of a state before and that frightened them.


	9. Dark Origins

**I'm so very tired… Here is the next chapter though! Happy Halloween to everyone who enjoys the holiday! You guys get to learn how Dark Parmius originated so yay for bad guys!**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Vlad was never a man who wanted or appreciated pity. Seeing these children looking down at him in such a way seemed to reinvigorate him and Vlad waved his hand at them nonchalantly. Forcing himself to sit up a little straighter Vlad attempted to straighten his tattered rags so he at least felt slightly neat. The sight of his bare feet annoyed him, the only reason he had clothes was because he had done as Dark Parmius wanted and promised not to use his clothes to hurt himself in any way. He crossed his legs allowing his back to rest against the cold metal wall then gestured to the ground before him.

They made no move to sit and Vlad was unsure if he could walk far, but his pride made it impossible to admit such a thing so he covered himself by saying "It doesn't matter where we talk as you children should know. Dark Parmius already knows you're here I'm sure and as of right now we are all the mice in his little cat and mouse chase. Before I start answering your ridiculous questions however I want two of my own answered. Number one how did you find me in this labyrinth? Number two…" he paused for a second a defeated look crossing his features, the same sad defeated look Danny had seen only one other time on Vlads alternate self. "Maddie…" Vlad whispered tears forming in his eyes.

Danny shook his head the wound of losing his parents still too fresh to easily speak of. Vlads features crumpled and what little life he had gained in the past few moments seemed to go out of him. Worried about him in spite of everything he had done Sam dropped to her knees calling on her healing powers as she gently pressed a hand to his side. Vlad flinched at her unexpected touch and a moment later she hissed in sympathy. He was bruised from the inside out, malnourished, and he was missing his ghost half. Regardless of what she did Sam realized that he was dying. Not in the next few days or maybe even months but Sam realized with a heavy heart that Vlad probably wouldn't survive another two years at most.

"Don't bother I already know." Vlad snipped as Sam opened her mouth. Vlad pointedly ignored her expression and waved her glowing hand away from his side. "My other question?" he stated making them look at each other looking a little lost. Dealing with idiots once again Vlad thought as he sighed not wanting to ask his question a second time.

"I found you." A voice piped up from behind Jazz. Danni poked her head around Jazzes form then stepped out from behind her fully to let her creator see her.

"Ah, finally something that makes sense." Vlad sighed "I created you so you could always find the people you imprinted on. To be fair I was supposed to be the only one you imprinted on but you went and imprinted on young Daniel then later his parents. I suppose I should be thankful that some part of the imprinting allowed you to locate me here."

They all stared at Vlad in various forms of surprise and Danny wrapped his arms around Danni who was shaking slightly.

"You're welcome you crazy stupid excuse of a human being. I can't believe I ever called you my father!" Danni snapped feeling strangely used.

"You have asked your questions and made everyone feel like crap. Congratulations. Now it's our turn. What in the heck happened to you?" Danny snarled being careful not to squeeze Danni too tight in his annoyance. Sam stood up to stand by his side while Tucker and Jazz stood to the other side effectively hemming him in.

Vlad laughed at their attempt of a scare tactic. "Don't worry children I shall tell all. Although I will say that you will all want to sit down for this. It a long story and I only want to tell it once so no questions or violence towards me until I am done."

"We are not children Masters." Jazz said fed up with the way Vlad was acting, they were trying to save him and in return he was obviously wasting their time. He clearly hadn't changed and all she felt toward this man was a cold fury. Her cold tone clearly illustrated this fact and Vlad stared up at her startled as Danny realized for the first time how similar her and his moms voice were. "We have spent over a year fighting in a war that from the sound of things, you have had a hand in creating one way or another. We have lost many people we loved including our parents. So to be completely blunt, tell us what you know and cut the drama act. Otherwise so help me I'll kill you myself and we can go find the answers elsewhere."

Vlad swallowed hard paling a shade or two lighter at her threat. While Danny could threaten and bluster all he wanted Vlad was almost totally certain he couldn't kill in cold blood. He had felt that way about Jasmine as well but the cold flat stare she was giving him made him rapidly rethink things.

"Very well then." Vlad muttered plucking nervously at his shirt. "You chi… I mean you all should really sit it is a long story." They all shared a look and after a moment seemed to agree because they started to sit down. He waited until Team Phantom settled as a group all leaning against each other. He wanted to roll his eyes at the saccharine sweetness of the huddle but with the way Jasmine was glaring at him Vlad felt it probably wasn't a safe option. Before they could get too impatient Vlad began.

"As you all probably know by now I was completely out casted by both worlds after the Disastroid. I still felt that I could easily rule but with Daniel becoming the world's hero and many of the ghosts actually respecting him I realized I would have to take everything I wanted by force. To do so however I needed more power. I already had the crown of fire but other than being able to siphon off some energy from it the crown wouldn't work for me. I knew I would need the ring of rage to really be able to use it so I went into the ghost zone and tried to steal the ring from Pariahs sarcophagus. I was planning on letting Pariah Dark distract you while I did as I pleased but I ran into a few issues. I couldn't locate the key to open the sarcophagus and I didn't realize that those dammed Observants had already removed the ring somehow. By the time I realized this I couldn't just go and take the ring because I couldn't find the dammed thing and I searched for it thoroughly. I knew the Observants had to have it but I couldn't take it from them as I was. While the Obsevants don't like to fight they will if they have to and unfortunately they are not beings you want to really cross."

Danny snorted at this, angrily thinking of his alternate future and the others glanced at him curiously. Danny simply shook his head and turned his attention back to Vlad. Vlad either hadn't noticed or didn't care about Dannys snort and had continued to drone on.

"-didn't care about the consequences at that point I just needed power to get what I wanted. So I decided to steal the power from some of the most powerful ghosts in the realms. Actually I didn't really want to steal their power as much as absorb them entirely. Think of it more like a way to merge one ghost with another. It took me several years to build a device that would allow me to merge the power of different ghosts with my own without killing myself fully. I started small of course and tested it out on several weaker ghosts of the zone. It worked and I could feel myself becoming more and more powerful with every ghost I merged with. Of course by this time they had crowed Daniel king of the ghost zone and I ran into another problem. The crown wanted to go to you Daniel."

Dannys expression changed from one of disgust from Vlads words to one of surprise and the others looked stunned as well. "The crown wanted to come to me?"

Vlad nodded his expression downcast. "The crown tried to return to you the moment the zone accepted you as its ruler. I was just barely able to prevent it by placing a special barrier of mixed power around it so it could no longer sense you."

"Sense?" Jazz asked beating her brother by a split second.

"Yes sense." Vlad snapped crankily at the constant interruptions "The crown and ring only work for the current king of the ghost zone or a previous king apparently. In other words, the more powerful the objects in the ghost zone, the more they are alive so to speak. The owner of said powerful object, are able to call the objects to them as long as the object accepts them as the master. The crown refused me." Vlad spat striking his hand against the ground in annoyance causing Danni to jump and curl a little closer to Sam and Danny. Danny glared at Vlad who sighed and shifted pulling his legs up under him a little further.

Taking a deep breath Vlad continued in a calmer tone. "As I was saying the crown refused me. There was two ways I could make it accept me. I could kill Daniel and become the new ruler of the ghost zone, or I could merge with Pariah Dark, then I would technically be a past king in a sense. Merging with Pariah Dark was far easier than killing you Daniel, since you had already far exceeded my powers even with the extra I had gained with the minor mergings. So I snuck back into the ghost zone and stole the sarcophagus of forever sleep."

Vlad paused for a moment his features scrunching up as he assembled the final parts of his story. Although his story fully enforced their thinking that Vlad was a crazy fruitloop, they feared that if they interrupted now, that he would decide not to finish his story, even if it was an insane quest for power kind of story. Team Phantom was hooked on the story by this point and the silence hung heavy in the air as they waited for him to continue. After a few more moments of silence just before they began to get impatient, Vlad continued his voice almost sad.

"My machine worked too well. I had only been using it on weaker ghosts, and only on creature type ghosts. I didn't need a random intelligent or humanoid ghost to disappear and someone notice, thus I didn't try and merge with anything with an advanced mind. I should have tried to test it out but I was impatient and because of my impatience I didn't realize that I was unbalancing my human ghost ratio so to speak. When I merged with Pariah Dark my humanity was… overwhelmed and then expelled. I… I was expelled and my ghost half fully merged with Pariah Dark. When he opened his eyes he called himself Dark Parmius and tried to kill me simply because I was a weaker part of what he once was."


	10. Understanding Stupidity

**Aren't origin stories fun?! I had such a rough time when I originally created Dark Parmius. I mean I knew he existed but I didn't know how he came about. Then I looked at the name and went oh duh… Thanks brain. (Yes I know I am crazy just read the chapter and you too will see)**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Vlad went silent and stayed silent his gaze far away and filled with painful memories. Danny shuddered because Vlads words resonated with the memories of how Dan was created. The rest of Team Phantom didn't know exactly how Dan was created in the other time line, they just knew he was an alternate version of Danny that was absolutely nuts. They knew the bare minimum of course, that he was a full ghost but they didn't know that he was a combined version of Plasmius and Phantom. Danny had never told them that, or the fact that it was Vlads fault, for he had ripped out Dans ghost half out under the pretense of wanting to help Dan after everyone had been killed. Danny hadn't believed everything the future Vlad had told him mostly because he hadn't wanted to believe that he could become evil at the drop of the hat and turn sadness into such rage. He knew better now as he had a flashback of how he lost control on the battlefield after learning of his fathers death. At that point in time though he had been so terrified of turning into Dan as he matured, that he had gone to Clockwork for the full story. Clockwork had been a little hesitant to tell him but in the end he had shown him only after exacting the promise that he wouldn't go after Vlad in his world. Danny had promised and it was a tale he would take to his grave. He also vowed to never trust a single thing that Vlad said or did. But now Vlad had done it twice. He had created a monster that was hell bent on destroying the world and everything in it.

"So this truly is all your fault." Danny stated his voice trembling with suppressed rage. Vlads eyes shot open at the intensity of the emotion in his voice, and almost fearing what he would see Vlad looked up at Danny nervously licking his lips.

"Do you realize that this is the second timeline you have destroyed because of your desire for power and control?!" Danny roared making everyone jump in shock and confusion.

Infuriated by Vlads stupidity and lack self control Danny tried to stand ready to beat Vlad to a pulp. Thankfully Danni was practically in his lap and Sam clung to him as he started to move restricting his ability to leap to his feet. He still could easily, even with their extra weight. He wouldn't however because he would never risk hurting one of them.

"Danny please!" Sam said trying to keep her voice calm as she clung to him. "You don't want to kill him." At her words Vlad scrunched himself against the wall even further.

"I don't want to kill him." Danny growled gesturing to the cowering fool before them "I want to beat him to a pulp. Then I'll let you heal him so I can beat him to a pulp a second time."

"I'm not sure that will do a lot of good man." Tucker snorted trying hard not to laugh at Dannys words.

"Yeah but it may make me feel better." Danny retorted however with Sam holding on to him sending a wave of calming energy through him he was already starting to calm down though Vlad didn't seem to notice.

"Please… don't beat me." Vlad said his voice trembling as he raised his hands defensively across his body. "I'm not quite done with my story yet." Vlad wasn't sure if that would be enough to stop Danny but it was all he had. Vlad was starting to realize that he had made a tactical error when he had assumed that nothing had changed between them. It wasn't just Jazz who was different, all of them had changed in the time he had been a prisoner of Dark Parmius.

At Vlads trembling plea Danny slumped, feeling slightly embarrassed for letting his anger and aggression take hold of him yet again. He was still plenty pissed but he knew that at this point Vlad had already paid for what he had done in spades. If getting thrashed and imprisoned by your literal other half wasn't karma Danny didn't know what was.

A tense silence hung in the air as Vlad still tried to make himself as small as possible. Danny could feel that the others were waiting to see what he wanted to do. They finally had answers as to where Dark Parmius had come from but according to Vlad he hadn't finished his story. With a sigh Danny tried to make his voices sound as non threatening as possible before speaking again.

"So, Dark Parmius is a combination of your ghost half Plasmius and Pariah Dark." Danny stated in an attempt to get Vlad speaking again. Then he groaned slapping a hand to his forehead as a thought came to him. "How much do you guys want to bet Dark Parmius is just a combo of the two names?"

His friends looked confused but coming out of his defensive curl Vlad nodded. "The first three letters of Pariah and the last four of Plasmius, the Dark part is obvious of course." Vlad answered before Danny could explain.

The others laughed at this revelation and Tucker said "I still think it sounds like on old cheese." This made them laugh harder and even Vlad cracked a smile.

"Did you ask Dark Parmius if that's where he got his name from? I mean you seem awfully sure in your reasoning." Jazz asked curiously once everyone had stopped giggling.

Vlad lifted his shirt showing healing bruises, freshly healed gashes, and a bold jagged scar that sliced across his torso. Other scars covered every inch of the skin they could see and all of them visibly paled as he dropped the shirt back into place. "Dark Parmius gave me that scar for having the 'courage' to ask such a question. He confirmed my reasoning as I was bleeding out on the floor. The only reason I survived was because he needed me alive to unlock the shielding I had put on the crown when I was still Plasmius. He also needed my mind to build him an army."

"The mutant creatures…" Tucker whispered and Vlads head bobbed slightly his eyes filled with pain and sorrow.

"I held out as long as I could." Vlad said a pleading note in his voice as if he were asking for forgiveness. "I tried everything in my power to make him kill me. I even tried to kill myself multiple times when it became too much to bear but even I have a breaking point. That's why I was put into that room, to prevent me from finishing myself off before Dark Parmius is done with me. Although I finally gave in and told him how to take the barrier off the crown because he… he had Maddie and I thought I could save her." Vlad went silent again and everyone could only feel pity for him.

Danny shifted feeling uncomfortable and not just because of Vlads revelations. They had been sitting here chatting for a while and he was starting to wonder why they hadn't been seen or bothered by anything yet. Also the foreboding feeling that he had felt since stepping out of the Fenton jet was steadily growing stronger. The very air was starting to feel almost strained and his instincts were telling him to quit wasting time and find the source of the wrongness. Before he could voice his worries or start to move though Vlad spoke again.

"I'm sorry I couldn't save your mother Daniel. I'm sorry that we always had such a terrible relationship. I don't remember what I was like before I received my ghost half but I think that having one overshadowed what little good I had in me. Dark Parmius is evil, truly and irreversibly evil. At this point he won't stop until he rules both realms and he isn't afraid to destroy them to get what he wants."

"Wait, destroy?" Danny demanded his full attention back on Vlad once again.

Vlad nodded "He has created a machine, a merging machine like the one I made. This one however has the ability to merge the real world with the ghost zone."

"Impossible." Tucker breathed in the stunned silence. "That would require an insane amount of power and besides, a kind of machine to do something like that would have to be huge like…" he froze mid sentence and scrambled to his feet so suddenly, he made everyone else jump in surprise. Whipping out his PDA he rapidly typed something into it and several beams of different colors raked over the walls once again. The others watched the blood drain from his face and he turned back to them his face a mask of horror.

"Tucker?" Danni queried climbing to her feet with the others.

"We are inside the machine." Tucker said his voice soft. "Probably from where the campus starts, this whole dam place is a giant machine. It's being powered by a natural lava bed deep below us and that's not even the worst part."

"Do we want to know?" Jazz asked

Tucker shook his head "Probably not but I have to tell you anyways. This machine is already on and has been for several months. I don't know if it's working or not but all those anomalies I kept finding would make complete sense if it were."

"Anomalies?" Jazz asked

"Oh my gosh." Danni whispered

"Crazy cheese head fruitloop." Sam growled

"I didn't realize he actually turned it on." Vlad said

"That's why this place feels wrong." Danny snapped

They all looked at each other having all said something at the same time. Before any of them could speak again Danny spoke his voice firm and unyielding. "We have to turn it off. Vlad you need to show us the way to the control room of this thing."

Vlad nodded "I will try but it's not like I was allowed out of my cell very often. When I was they blindfolded me and carried me to where they wanted me to go." He said slowly getting up. He started walking down the hall and soon reached a dead end. He glared at the wall as if it shouldn't be there and Danny decided not to tell him that they were in a corridor that was capped at both ends. Even if Vlad had managed to escape his cell, all he would have been able to do is walk up and down the long hallway until a guard or Dark Parmius found him. "We need to go that way." He was pointing at the right hand wall. With a sigh Danny placed a hand on Vlads shoulder and made him intangible.

"Stay close guys." Danny said and walked through the wall with Vlad into another hallway. This hallway wasn't empty. Two Goons hung in the air on the other side, before the Goons could attack or multiply Danny blasted them and they disintegrated. The others were right behind Danny and they all looked at Vlad who shrugged.

"I'm sure as we get closer to the control room we will be seeing more of them. In fact I am betting on it. I just hope we don't run into Dark Parmius." Vlad said a slight shiver running through his thin frame. "We should continue before any more attention is draw to us."


	11. The Machine

**Tucker gets some time to shine! Things are heating up and discoveries are made. With that said here is a funny little quote by me.**

 **Living on the edge stinks. What happens if you roll over in your sleep?**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Ducking out from under Dannys hand Vlad started walking forward again and seeing no other choice Team Phantom followed. They had to phase through several more walls and destroy several more Goons as they continued through the maze of corridors. They could tell that this place had been made by something that wasn't human. The way the corridors just ended in some areas showed that this place was never meant for humans to tread in. Several times Vlad stopped and seemed almost lost. He would close his eyes and turn this way and that as he tried to remember his way around through what he had felt. Everything looked exactly the same and at this point Danny knew for a fact that this place had already been altered by what Tucker was referring to as anomalies. In these corridors it didn't feel as if they were in the human world but it also didn't feel as if they were in the ghost zone either. It was a strange in between feeling and Danny knew that there was no way the original college buildings were this big. Danny also knew they had been walking for a while and steadily they were slowing down as the meager energy Vlad had was used up.

After destroying the latest batch of Goons they ran into Danny called for a break. Team Phantom didn't need it but Vlad slumped to the floor panting even though he hadn't lifted a finger in any of the fights. Ten agonizingly slow minutes passed and Danny sighed as Vlad made no move to get up any time soon. They didn't have the time to sit around and wait for Vlad no matter how bad off he was, they had to get to the control room soon. Danny didn't know why they needed to get there so fast but his instincts were screaming at him and he was nearly ready to try and fly ahead on his own just so he could move faster.

"You should carry him. We will be able to move far quicker and you won't feel like jumping out of your skin if you carry him." Sam whispered as she wrapped her arms around Danny from behind.

"Lovebirds." Tucker muttered behind them followed swiftly by an "Ouch!"

"Thank you Jazz" Danny said as Danni giggled into her hands while floating several inches off the ground.

Releasing Danny Sam moved over to where Danni hung in the air still giggling. Before she noticed her Sam pulled Danni out of the air and into a hug which made her giggle harder as Sam tickled her lightly. "Alright time to get moving again" Danny said a smile on his lips as he watched them

Vlad sighed and struggled to get up. Before he could get very far Danny lifted him right off the floor bridal style and started moving. For a moment Vlad hung in Dannys arms too shocked to think then he started thrashing.

"I can walk on my own!" Vlad snapped as he got nowhere with his thrashing about in fact, Danny had continued on as if he were not even moving.

"We can travel far quicker this way." Danny answered and Vlad realized that they were indeed going far quicker than before. The three halfas were flying as Jazz and Tucker kept pace at an easy run.

"This… this is demeaning!" Vlad snapped slamming a hand as hard as he could into Dannys chest. Danny didn't even flinch and Vlad cradled his now bruised hand against his own chest.

"I don't care." Danny answered chuckling inwardly about Vlads attempted punch. "I'm carrying you, either like this or piggy back, its your choice."

Vlad sulked nearly causing Danny to laugh out loud. "Piggy back." Vlad said in a voice so low Danny almost didn't catch it even with his enhanced hearing. Without warning Danny slung Vlad around onto his back without slowing his pace. Vlad yelped in surprise and clung to him instinctively as the others behind them chuckled at his expense. After that Vlad merely pointed the way and several minutes later they came to another dead end where Team Phantom paused waiting for Vlads instructions.

"We are very close. Two more halls down, then through a large metal door, and we should be there I think." Vlad said from over Dannys shoulder

Danny turned to his family "Be ready for anything." He said and got nods from everyone.

They phased through the wall and to their surprise met no resistance other than a single Goon who was hanging out around the metal door to the control room. Phasing through the door they stood gaping at what surrounded them. It was a large circular room with high tech equipment jammed into every available slice of space. Large metal tubes came out of the floor near the center of the room and vanished into a glowing portal in the floor. Another portal took up space on the already crowded wall near the back of the room opposite of them.

"Uh Tucker?" Danny breathed letting Vlad down off his back.

Tucker was rapidly typing the moment they walked into the room and he flung what looked like buttons at the two portals. "I'm going to need a minute." Tucked answered "Don't go in the portal on the floor. I'm pretty sure it connects to that lava bed I was telling you about. The other portal connects to the ghost zone."

Both Danni and Danny flew into the portal on the wall to see where in the ghost zone they were as Tucker moved to one of the consoles with Jazz following close behind. Tucker looked the consol over and groaned.

"What's wrong?" Jazz asked as Tucker pulled a small tool bag out of a compartment on his backpack.

"Dark Parmius is using weird technology and I don't have a port end that will allow me to connect to the main frame." Tucker grumbled "I wish this was like the movies just once and everyone used the same technology that I did. Then I could just plug my stuff in, take over, and it would all be done easy peasy in seconds. "

Jazz laughed at his attitude and watched what he did fascinated. Tucker took some material that looked like clay and pressed it into the narrow slot that Jazz assumed was an information port. Scanning it into his PDA he plugged it into a small box and whistled tunelessly as it whirled.

"Tucker we talked about that!" Sam griped from where she sat near Vlad her hands glowing lightly.

He giggled nervously "Sorry Sam bad habit. Blame it on Technus I picked it up from working with him."

"I already have." Sam growled her voice sounding dangerous.

"Is that why he is afraid of you?" Jazz asked as the box under Tuckers PDA chimed and spat out a metal port connector.

"Yes!" Tucker crowed before Sam could answer. He swiftly attached a phone sized screen connected to some wires on one side of the connector and plugged it into the console. The screen flashed on and code started to scroll across the screen. Minutes passed as he picked through the code this time humming tunelessly as he forgot his surroundings. Jazz ignored the humming and watched the screen as pictures flashed briefly across its surface.

"I don't know who's lair that was but Dark Parmius has turned it into a lab like this." Danny said as he and Danni reemerged. "Outside the door we seem to be near that pineapple looking stone which means we are a two day journey from Amity Parks natural portal. That makes easier to see how he got his army to Amity Park so fast both times."

Jazz turned to reply when Tucker cursed long and loud making all eyes turn to him in shock. Danny flew to his side instantly Sam and Danni following quickly behind.

"What's wrong?" Danny demanded

Tucker looked up at him his eyes wide "I can't stop this thing."

There was a long tension filled pause then all at once everyone yelled "What?!" at the same time.

Tucker raised his hands to his beanie pulling on the edges as he stared down at the screen before him.

"Tucker explanation please. What do you mean you can't turn the machine off?" Danny asked quietly and calmly as he could. He had never seen Tucker like this before and instinctively realized it must be really bad.

"Oh I can turn this off. In fact turning it off is about the only thing I can do at this point." Tucker cried his voice rapidly heading into a panicked whine. "This thing has been on for over 6 months practically with an unlimited supply of power. Trying to stop the two worlds from merging at this point would be like trying to turn off a bomb when it's already started to explode! Plus the idiot Dark Parmius didn't take some things into account and the way as well as the rate at which we are merging right now will destroy both worlds."

Everyone gazed at Tucker in horror for a long moment before Danny broke the silence. "What can we do? There has to be a way to fix this Tucker so what can we do?"

Tucker paused for a moment and attempted not to hyperventilate as he sought a way to explain what Dark Parmius had done. "The way Dark Parmius has done it the worlds will merge together as one and I can't change that at this point. The two worlds have always been intertwined pretty deep that's why portals connect them naturally. Dark Parmius has altered the balance that has kept them as two separate entities though. Kind of like flipping a magnet so that instead of repelling the other magnet it attracts them. However, they are merging too fast right now and that's probably the cause of all the anomalies I was tracking. I think I can slow it down but I'm going to need someone on the ghost zone side mirroring my actions. Once we slow the process down I can lock the system and cause it to overload so that he can't mess with the merging anymore."

"So the worlds are merging, and there is nothing we can do except slow it down so it doesn't destroy reality as they merge?" Jazz clarified

Tucker nodded looking defeated. "I'll slow it down so it happens over a few years rather than weeks or months. When it's done our reality will be a cross between the ghost zone and the real world. Unfortunately we are already past the point of no return in the sense of simply stopping the process. Everything should survive the merging but even I don't know that for a fact."

Silence hung in the room like a physical thing. All of them knew the consequences of not doing anything at all but no one was sure how they were going to explain their actions to the rest of the world when they got out of here. Eventually someone had to speak and that person was Sam.

"Fine let's do this before we get found out. What do we need to do?" Sam asked

Tucker looked at Danny who nodded. Danny was smart in his own right but in situations like this Danny defaulted to Tuckers experience. Although Danny wasn't sure if merging worlds was something that even Tuckers smarts could cover. "Jazz, Danni, I need you two in the ghost zone mirroring my actions so we can slow this thing down properly. This panel here only allows me access to the machine on this side and I don't think taking out just this side will be enough. The only thing is that once we start the portals are probably going to close as I redirect the power which means you won't be able to get back."

They both nodded though they didn't like the idea of not being able to get back to their family if they were needed. "Ok so we will see you guys in a few days back in Amity Park." Jazz said and they all hugged saying swift goodbyes.

Tucker gave Jazz a spare handheld computer and port. "Plug this in and follow my directions. I'll be able to do most of the electronics stuff but you will have to hit all the buttons when I tell you."

Jazz nodded and took Danni's hand pulling her towards the portal. At the entrance they paused looking back. "Try and stay out of trouble guys." Jazz said

"Love you guys see you soon." Danni said a moment later and together they walked through the swirling green portal.

Danny wrapped his arms around Sam who leaned into him glad for his support.


	12. When Things Go Boom

**I was going to wiat until tomorrow to post but I am going to be busy so tada!**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

They waited as Tucker gave Jazz some instructions, then waited some more as Jazz got used to the electronics she was going to be handling. Finally she gave the all clear and together Jazz and Tucker got to work.

"Alright they are plugged in, come on baby work for me." Tucker whispered his hands flying across the screen as he checked the systems in more detail keeping Jazz up to date on what she needed to be doing.

Several tense minutes passed and then the portal in the floor, the one Tucker said went to lava closed. A few moments later the one in the wall closed and it was then that Danny realized that they were missing someone.

"Sam where is Vlad?" Danny whispered keeping his voice low so he didn't bother Tucker.

Sam looked around the room confused. "He was right there." She said pointing to a spot on the floor near a different consol. "I didn't hear the door open or anything is there a trap door somewhere?"

Danny tensed up and slowly moved so that he was in front of Sam and Tucker hissing. "Our ghost sense didn't go off. He must have been here the whole time."

"Danny?" Sam whispered and then she felt it. A strange almost shiver ran through the air in the room. It felt evil and Sam recognized it. "Dark Parmius"

A deep nasty chuckle sounded from the other side of the room and he shimmered into view holding a struggling Vlad by the neck. He looked crazier than he had on the battlefield if that were even possible; although he now had a scar over his right eye where Dannys ice had pulled off his skin. "Thank you for fixing my machine, ruling two worlds is so much more difficult that just ruling one. I am disappointed in you though, I was starting to get bored wondering how it would take for you children to notice me." He said his voice deceptively calm.

"Put Vlad down." Danny snarled

"I will not!" Dark Parmius roared as Danny prepared to fly into battle. "Vladdie here is mine. This lair is mine, and the world shall be MINE!"

"None of it is yours especially not an entire world! It will never be yours, and because deep down you know this, you have decided to destroy it first!" Danny yelled back at him "Plus you can't own a human being you crazed up cheese head of a fruitloop!"

"I am not a FRUITLOOP!" Dark Parmius roared in fury throwing Vlad to the side like a ragdoll before charging them head on. Danny had already started to move as Dark Parmius roared pushing off so fast, the ground dented and Sam stumbled back. There was a loud whump as they slammed together in the center and Danny blasted Dark Parmius back following swiftly behind as they both went intangible through the wall. A series of booms shook the building and Sam briefly hoped they didn't damage anything too important before Tucker was done.

"I'm going after Danny!" Sam yelled to Tucker about to rush after Danny but then she saw Vlad in a crumpled heap where Dark Parmius had thrown him. Torn between the two but knowing Vlad would need help more at this moment she moved to Vlads side and as gently as possible rolled him over. It was worse than she could have imagined, Vlads eyes were already glazed and his breathing was harsh. Sam reached for her healing power already trying to isolate the damage, but froze as Vlad managed to whisper "No"

"I can save you." Sam whispered back hating him and wanting to help him at the same time. It was her curse or as Danny would say her obsession. She always felt the need to help heal others if they were hurt even if she hated them. So gritting her teeth she reached out to him again hands glowing but stopped because to her surprise Vlad smiled up at her. It was a genuine peaceful smile, one that Sam had never seen on him before. It made him look a dozen years younger and as he took another breath she was able to make out a final word. "Free"

His body relaxed as his chest emptied of air and Sam didn't need her superior ghost hearing to know his heart had stopped.

"Sam is he?" Tucker queried, his hands still moving across the screen and consol. He hated that he couldn't turn and help but Tucker knew that they all had specific jobs. His job at this point was one of the most important he had ever faced and nothing could prevent him from finishing it. Not an insane battle echoing through the building as two powerhouses blasted away at each other, not the panicked voice of Jazz as she and Danni were attacked by Goons on the other side, not even his best friends fruitloop wanna be enemy dying mere feet away.

"Yeah Tuck he is." Sam answered as she set Vlads hands on his chest and stood feeling a kind of fury burn through her. "Keep working Tucker I'm going after Danny and Dark Parmius."

Tucker sighed as he guided Jazz through the last few steps and told them to run for it. He could finish everything from his side on his own at this point and Danni sounded like she needed Jazzs help to get out of the lair in one piece. Plus if there were Goons swarming over there Tucker knew it wouldn't be long before they faced the same issue. "I'm almost done here. Give me two sec…"

The door blasted off its hinges and Goons filled the space where the door had been.

"Uh Tucker, make it a really quick two seconds ok?" Sam said and Tucker paled as he saw the Goons lining the hall beyond. He didn't even answer just began to furiously hit buttons on his screen and the consol setting a timer to overload and explode the systems.

The Goons attacked as one and Sam decided it was time to let loose. Before the Goons could get five steps in she threw down several seed balls she carried in a bag around her waist. Vines exploded from the seed balls swiftly scaling the room trapping many of the Goons in their tendrils. This made for great target practice and she blasted the trapped Goons a few at a time. The flow of Goons didn't stop however and Sam had to start concentrating on blasting any that got past her vines and there were a lot that were starting to get past. She threw down another seed ball growing a living vine wall between her and most of the Goons. The few that didn't get trapped outside the wall flew forward in an attempt to mob her. Sam released a wave like blast of concentrated ectoenergy sending a few of them soaring back and dissolving from too much damage. One that managed to stay whole got past her defenses, and as it closed in to strike she whipped a long ectodagger from the sheath on her back, slashing the thing across its chest and neck. It fell back already starting to dissolve and Tucker yelled "Done!"

There was a loud crunching sound and the lights flashed off. In the pure darkness the eerie light from the Goons glow was enough for Sam to see that the Goons had frozen the moment they could no longer see. It was something they had never seen happen before and Sam fell back to Tuckers side before they stared to move again grabbing his arm so she could turn him intangible. "Please tell me that's you Sam…" Tucker whined and Sam nodded then realized he couldn't see her.

"Turn your night vision on Tucker!" Sam snapped seeing the Goons start to move again as they honed in on their voices. Swiftly Sam threw a shield around the two of them blocking some ectoblasts as more Goons overwhelmed her vine walls and kept on coming, their combined glows now sufficient enough to cast the whole room in an eerie greenish light. "We need to get out of here can we go?!"

"One sec." Tucker said hit two buttons on his handheld then looked up at Sam as the electronics before them started to whine. "Ok we should really go now cuz I've made this thing overload and its going to explode. Danni and Jazz were having the same issues with the Goons over there."

"Ok great, good to know, lets get out of here!" firmly gripping him by the arms and turning them both intangeable Sam flew through the wall dragging Tucker along. Goons started to follow then all at once the walls shook and groaned.  
"Fly faster!" Tucker yelled and Sam did as he asked, the walls behind them rapidly blasting to pieces as they just barley stayed ahead of the blast wave. It seemed to last forever although Sam knew it was only a few seconds and as they passed through one last wall into a vast open space Sam realized that they had left the blast behind them. Panting and exhausted Sam set Tucker down before sliding to her knees dark green rings enveloping her and leaving her human.


	13. Lost Love

**Its raining! I love rain! Its the perfect time for it too.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Tucker stumbled over some debris and nearly landed on his butt as he turned in a circle checking their surroundings for any enemies. He was also trying to figure out where they had just ended up. However after a few moments he gave up and realizing Sam still hadn't gotten back to her feet he turned back towards her.

"You ok?" Tucker asked concern for her coloring his voice. Sam waved him off and stood allowing him to offer her a helping hand.

"I'm fine. Just used a little too much power I think, I'll switch back in a few minutes." Sam panted

Tucker pulled an ectobar from his bag and handed it to her ignoring her grumbling. "Its orange flavored your favorite. Just eat it. The last thing we need is you collapsing in hostile territory. Besides we still need to find Danny and kick Dark Parmius butt."

Sam knew he was right and tore the green Fenton wrapper off the energy bar before swiftly eating it. Dannys parents had made them as a quick energy source for ghosts and half ghosts. They made some for humans as well but Sam didn't think that they tasted as good as the ghost ones. As soon as she finished the first bar Tucker handed her a second and she ate it without complaint already feeling the energy from the first bar trickling through her system. Tucker finished off his own bacon flavored human energy bar as he once again checked out the area they were in. It was a large open space with a decently high roof. This was one area that Dark Parmius had not converted and large portions of it were either collapsing or had already collapsed. Rubble littered the ground just about everywhere and large sections of the roof were missing. Due to the missing sections of the roof tucker realized that it was drizzling outside and appeared to be near dusk. Shaking his head Tucker had to wonder just how long they had been inside wandering around and talking to Vlad. At the thought of Vlad Tuckers stomach turned violently.

"Oh man." Tucker said and Sam jumped spinning around to look at him.

"What's wrong Tucker?" Sam asked seeing a very odd look on his face.

"We… um… we left Vlads body behind in the explosion." He said looking a little nauseous.

Sam grimaced, the moments the Goons had blasted the doors she had already decided to leave his body behind and with a heavy heart she tried to explain to Tucker. "I couldn't carry him and you. Plus between protecting our flanks and staying ahead of the explosion I'm just happy we didn't end up joining him."

Tucker still looked uncomfortable and Sam had to sigh. She did feel terrible that she had to leave his body behind but he was dead and he thankfully hadn't manifested as a ghost. Plus in the end he had looked happy so at this point she was sure that Vlad would not hold a grudge.

"We can put his name on the monument or erect a grave stone for him when we get back. For now though we need to find Danny and standing around here isn't going to get us anywhere." Sam said calmly. As if to prove her point she switched to her ghost half the dark green rings encircling her swiftly.

"Right." Tucker answered shaking off the melancholy feeling that had threatened to overwhelm him. He could let the horrors of today overwhelm him later; right now they had more important things to do. "You listen that way and I'll listen this way." Tucker said pointing down the open space to the right. Before he could pull out his tech though, the ground beneath them began to vibrate and moments later it exploded about 30 meters in front of them. Dark Parmius went soaring upwards his body bent at an awkward angle, his tattered cape fluttering around him looking extremely battered. Danny wasn't far behind catching up with shocking speed before slamming a round of ecto charged fists into Dark Parmiuses side and back. Dark Parmius roared as he shot back towards the ground slamming into the floor and creating a crater as he ground to a very painful halt. Danny panted one arm hanging limp as he hung midair.

"Danny!" Sam cried and seeing how badly he was injured he was leapt to the air to try and help.

"No Sam!" Danny yelled as he registered his friends presence.

It was too late however. Dark Parmius had already risen from the ground and knowing he was about to be beaten he took the treacherous way out. Seeing Dannys friends he created a massive blast of ectoenergy similar to the one that he had made on the battlefield days ago and then before any of them could move he released it. Sam dove for Tucker knowing she didn't have enough energy to sustain a shield through this attack but hoping she could shield him just enough to keep him alive. A blast of energy sent Dark Parmius flying as he released the energy ball and Danny practically became a streak as he rushed to beat the blast that had the potential to kill his best friend and soul mate. Danny made it with milliseconds to spare and threw a shield around the three of them as the blast struck. For a brief moment the shield held then the blast overwhelmed it.

"Danny!" Sam screamed barely able to keep her own shield together as the waves of energy pounded against it. In the overwhelming light Sam thought she saw a figure go flying past a black shadow that presented its back then her shield shattered draining what immediate energy she had, the lash back causing her to briefly lose consciousness. Sam awoke to a raging headache and she felt as if she had been pounded by hammers. That had actually happened to her once in a battle so she knew exactly how it felt. Groaning Sam tried to move and felt the skin on her back and shoulders crinkle unpleasantly like she had been standing near a really hot oven for far too long. She shifted ignoring the waves of pain and realized she was sprawled on top of Tucker who was also out for the count. Breath catching in her throat she pressed a hand to his chest sending a tiny probe of her power out into his body before sighing in relief. He had a nasty knot on the back of his head with a possible concussion, lots of bruises and several cuts but nothing was broken or damaged beyond repair.

"That leaves Danny." Sam muttered as she pushed herself into a sitting position. She expected to find him on the ground nearby but instead discovered the black ectoblasted ground scant inches from where she and Tucker lay. "Oh…Oh no…" she whispered in shock, her eyes tracing the twisted ground as it ran in a widening fan like pattern. In fact the only ground not black for several dozen feet was the small oblong bubble that ran around her and Tucker. There was a trench in the blackened ground and surrounding rubble as if the blast had pushed something through the ground.

"DANNY!" the scream tore its way out of her throat and Sam scrambled upright, she had to find him, had to help him. Not thinking straight Sam tried to jump into the air to go ghost and gain some altitude however all her energy reserves were used up and she crashed back to the ground. Ignoring the sudden pain of skinned palms and knees Sam lurched to her feet and froze as Tucker groaned behind her. She had almost left him in her rush to find Danny, left him unconscious in a hostile territory with no way to defend himself. It went against every instinct she had now that she was thinking about it, but the cold fear in her heart for Danny nearly didn't let her turn back. Upset with herself Sam returned to Tucker who's eyes were fluttering open.

"Lets not do that ever again…" Tucker groaned and Sam hauled him up to his feet supporting most of his weight.

"I've done it twice now, but that blast was totally different from the one he threw at us on the battlefield. It was also a heck of a lot stronger." Sam muttered forcing a still partially unconscious Tucker to hobble forward with her. "I'm pretty sure you are going to have a concussion but nothing else seemed badly damaged. I would leave you laying flat to search for Danny but I don't know if there are any more hostile entities around."

Tucker raised a hand to his head grimacing as he managed to get his feet under him a little better. He looked around as they limped forward and realized that all the ground around them was blackened except for where he and Sam had lain. His eyes trailed to the blasted half wall then the trench they were walking beside. "How did we survive this?" he asked his voice a broken whisper.

Sam didn't have an answer in fact she feared the answer to his question and by the time they reached the wall Tucker was managing to walk on his own although like Sam his head was killing him. The trench continued on past the rubble wall but more rubble blocked their path ahead. The rubble before them looked new and considering that the blackened trench was covered by some of it Tucker figured that it must have broken loose after the battle. Finally noticing the drizzle he looked up and saw that the roof was blasted upwards some small pieces were still breaking off falling to the ground at the edges. The damage was unique and Tucker recognized it as the result of Dannys ghostly wail but with the power turned way up. He pointed it out to Sam who was steadily trying to pick her way around the rubble.

"What in the heck happened while we were passed out?!" Sam groused keeping her voice down in case any enemies showed up. Suddenly Sam froze; she could feel something through her bond with Danny. Love cascaded down it and faded a quiet acceptance taking its place.

"NO!" Sam screamed not even feeling Tucker grab her as she started to fall to her knees. Sam concentrated hard on her bond with Danny ignoring everything else around them. She could feel it getting weaker and that terrified her. She pushed out of Tuckers arms ignoring his confusion and managed to turn intangible in human form rushing forward through the rubble leaving Tucker behind. A thread still connected them a single thread as slim as spider silk and as Sam barreled through the last of the roof rubble she saw why. Danny lay in a crater the one side he leaned against slightly more raised than the other. He was still in ghost form but he looked wrong to Sam. His suit was shredded in some places partially burnt in others. In fact there wasn't a single place on his body that didn't look injured. His one arm was a twisted broken mess and she swallowed hard wondering if she could even bring his arm back from an injury like that. Bile rose in her throat at that thought sending her forward stumbling. She practically flew to his side slamming to the ground so hard she sliced her knees on the sharp rubble.

"Danny! Danny please!" Sam cried reaching out to him her hands glowing with her remaining power. Her hands went straight through him to strike the ground below and a chill colder than ice ran up her back as she jerked them backwards. She couldn't feel him before her, couldn't sense him, and she sat dumbfounded realizing she couldn't heal him.

"Danny…" Sam begged her voice a wavering mess and then his eyes opened.

"Hey Sam." He said his voice weak and echoing far more than it usually did.

Pressing one hand to her mouth Sam brought her other still glowing hand up to his side stopping before it went through him again. There was nothing there that she could feel. No ghostly energy no human vibration it was like Danny's form was simply an afterimage of what had been there.

"Oh God please… I can't lose you Danny… please… please come back." Sam sobbed the glow fading from her hand.

Danny looked up at her his eyes a little too bright "I'm sorry Sam." He whispered one hand reaching up to her. "I love you, I always will no matter where I am or what I am. Stay safe and stay together everything will be ok."

His hand fell back to the earth and a strange glow lit up around him as parts of his image started to fade.

"You cant go." Sam whispered clinging to the gossamer thread that still tied them together.

Danny smiled sadly his image already so light it was practically a mirage. "I already have my love, I just wanted to say goodbye." His voice whispered and then he was gone an empty crater before her steadily being soaked by the misting drizzle overhead.

"NO!" Sam screamed slamming her hands into the ground. She could still feel him still sense him that gossamer thread was still there, it was still alive. Desperate Sam reached down it and it snapped with a suddenness that felt almost physical. She froze eyes wide her mind in shock over what it had just experienced. Emptiness seemed to fill the spot for a moment before a different feeling stole through her. It was a similar to what was there before but it was at the same time completely changed. Unable to come to terms with what had just happened she ignored it a rush of emotions and fatigue surging through her battered mind and body. For a moment Sam wondered briefly if that feeing was what Maddie had felt when Jack had died but then shock overwhelmed her and Sam crumpled to the ground her energy spent. Her eyes slid halfway closed as the feeling she had felt before slowly consolidated deep within her. It almost felt like a new bond but she was far too spent to reach out down it. As her vision started to fade out, her mind seemed to pick out a fuzzy humanoid shape standing before her. It was outlined by the mist and she reached towards it "Da…n…" her voice trailed off arm dropping to the broken ground as she lost consciousness.

* * *

 **Ok I kinda feel I need to put this after note here. We all knew Danny was going to die from the beginning of the story. I mean the story started with Sam finding his grave stone. He is dead sorry to anyone who was hoping otherwise. Good news though! The memory arc will be ending soon and the adventure will really begin! For anyone reading I hope you are enjoying the madness as much as I am because sometimes I don't even know what's going to happen next!**


	14. Aftershock

**This chapter didn't seem like much when I first wrote it out but it turns out that it is in fact important. More important than I even realized at first. Apparently my brain had a master plan that I wasn't queued in on until just recently. You all will find out eventually same as me but for future reference, this chapter is important….**

 **I think I'm starting to go a little nuts writing this story. Does anyone else have these brain withholding important information issues?**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Sam woke up in the Fenton jet wrapped in blankets. The whole craft hummed around her and she looked to her side to find Tucker leaning against the wall unconscious, as well as wrapped in blankets. She didn't remember making her way back to the jet and when she was finally able to wake Tucker up he didn't remember either. He remembered finding her and trying to move her but some Goons attacked and he had been knocked out. Neither one of them had any idea how they had gotten on the Fenton jet much less how they had gotten wrapped up in blankets. When they checked the controls they realized they were set to auto pilot and were headed back to the base camp in Amity Park. Tucker wanted to know what had happened and wondered if it had been Danny who had placed them on the jet. Sobbing Sam had shaken her head and told him what had transpired the moment she had run off. Tucker hadn't taken the news well and they held each other close both sobbing for much of the ride back to the base. The next two days were awful. They first had to inform everyone of Dannys death and then had to tell them what Dark Parmius had done. Then Jazz and Danni arrived and had to be told as well. Danni had refused to believe it saying she could still feel something. Sam was having the same issues but they were forced to believe that Danny really was gone when they used the boo-merang. They had thrown it and the thing had simply circled up and around before falling back to earth stating subject not found in Maddies voice.

That had been the final straw and Sam had fled deep into the ghost zone seeking out the one being who would be able to give her a definite answer. She went deep into the zone, far deeper than she had ever been before. Out here she could see the anomalies Tucker had mentioned the sky and other features didn't look right in some areas, in fact it almost looked like there was an extra layer to it. Some real world objects hung about visible but untouchable and Sam realized that the signs of the two worlds merging were far more apparent out here. She figured that Dark Parmius had probably started his experiments out here and added another question to her list of things she wanted to ask. Finally she stopped the air around her quiet as she simply floated in empty space.

"Clockwork… I have some questions." Sam said her voice scratchy from all the talking and crying she had done over the past few days. Silence permeated the air around her. She had hoped he would answer her. Danny had told them what had happened when he went to Clockwork with the crown. But Danny was… she cut the thought off before it finished losing all patience and control

"Clockwork PLEASE!" Sam screamed her voice ragged with anguish. Silence greeted her and she curled in on herself shaking. Her body had run out of tears and her throat hurt, so in her sorrow shaking was all she could do.

Warmth surrounded her at a creeping pace and it took several minutes for it to permeate her entire body, as it did she slowly came to realize she was being held. Her eyes fluttered open to find deep red ones looking down at her. They were in an unfamiliar room but Sam didn't care.

"You came." She whispered and Clockwork nodded his own eyes filled with sorrow.

"I know why you are here Sam and while some of your answers can only be answered by time I can tell you that the Danny you know and love is gone." Tears spilled down Clockworks face as he said this and Sam was devastated half the questions she wanted to ask fleeing her mind.

"I know many will be angry but I could not save him even though he is my charge. I am bound by the rules of time and I couldn't change what was meant to be for this world. Because of Dark Parmius the rules of this world have changed and I can no longer clearly see the paths this realm will have." He set Sam down in a hammock like seat and eyed her as if making sure she was still on the same page as him.

Sam felt a single tear run down her cheek and she reached up to wipe it away she realized that she was human and glowing which was not normal for her human form. Clockwork and the room around them were glowing the same way. The room was rectangular with no doors, had grey walls with a black floor, and shelves filled with broken clocks lined one wall opposite of her. On the opposite end of the room was a single shelf with something cylindrical on it but as she tried to make out what it was Clockwork moved directly in front of her cutting her observations short. Sam felt confused by this space and by Clockworks actions but before she could open her mouth he continued. "You are not fully here, at least not yet, but I did heal the physical wounds you had. You never should have come this far out in the state you are in. This area is unstable due to Dark Parmius first experiments with his merging machine which was why I was able to reach you." he sighed and wiped the tears from his own face.

Tenderly he reached out and wiped the tears from Sams face saying "I have placed my own safety measures around you and the rest of Team Phantom but until time plays out my part I cannot join you or help you more. I wish I could."

Clockwork turned from her and Sam reached out grabbing the edge of his cloak finding her voice as she did "Why can I still feel Danny if he is… gone?" Sam found she couldn't say dead, it was too final and considering the state of her world, being dead didn't really mean anything anymore.

Clockwork froze then spun back around to face her swiftly gripping her hands in his. A fuzzy feeling filled her for a few seconds and deep within Sam felt and recognized the strange bond that had sprung up when Danny had vanished. The bond didn't seem to go anywhere and yet it still existed almost as if it were waiting for the other side to accept its presence. It reminded her how a flower bud felt just before it opened. Then the feeling began to fade as the fuzzy feeling faded.

"I don't understand." Sam whispered wondering what the bond was and what it meant. Clockwork dropped her hands and was silent for a long moment clearly wanting to say something but unable to.

Sam remained silent, reaching inwards for the bond wanting to see if she could feel where the bond went out to but the bond she had felt was now hidden and inaccessible.

"What did you do?" Sam demanded infuriated that Clockwork had hidden the bond somehow.

"That bond is very special. You will find out how special in the future. For now it is best if you cannot feel it or remember it. You will understand later…I hope" Clockwork answered pressing a finger to her forehead.

"Wait!" Sam cried but it was over in less than an instant. Sam blinked shaking her head in confusion, the oddest feeling of déjà vu coming over her. Clockwork hung in front of her and Sam eyed him warily, they had been talking about something important but now she just couldn't figure out what it had been. "What did you just do?" Sam asked and Clockwork simply smiled.

"Time will answer the rest of your questions my child. Know that I am watching over you. There will be no more deaths in Team Phantom only life and second chances." He stated his gaze on a point far away in space, time, or both.

The room around her began to glow brighter and Sam reached out to Clockwork as he began to fade. She didn't feel as if he had answered anything but she knew that her time with him had come to an end. Sam blinked opening her eyes to find she was back in the ghost zone and in ghost form once again. However she had somehow traveled a long way and was only about an hour from the portal that would allow her to go back to Amity Park and the base where her friends were. Taking a deep breath and feeling far calmer than when she had first entered the ghost zone Sam started to move when suddenly a voice cried "There she is!"

It was Danni and she launched herself into Sams arms wrapping her smaller body around hers. "We were so worried about you! You have been gone for two days and I couldn't find you and…" Danni sniffed before burying her face into Sams shoulder unable to finish her sentence.

"I'm sorry Danni I had to go find answers." Sam whispered wrapping her arms around her and floated forward meeting Jazz and Tucker in the Specter speeder.

They went back to the base as Sam told them what had happened. In turn they told her that the world had basically freaked out when the news about the worlds merging came to light. There was a lot of finger pointing going on and Tucker felt that the only reason that ghosts and humans weren't at war with each other already was because they had fought together for so long on the same side. They were willing to work together and that was a good start or so Team Phantom thought. However the world had lost its hero and it seemed that everyone mourned. Dannys funeral was held near the ruins of Amity Park and a memorial dedicated to him was to be raised. Memorials sprang up for Danny all over the globe and in the ghost zone Phantoms keep vanished. No ghost really knew what it meant but all of them came to the agreement that there would be no new king. Plus Danny had hidden the ring and crown. Many ghosts searched for them initially, thinking that if they could claim the artifacts they could become the new ruler. However they were never located. After a long period of mourning Team Phantom got to work knowing that with the coming Merging of the realms that there would be a ton of problems to work out and things to do.


	15. Major Changes

**May those in trouble find safety, may those in despair find peace. May the world come together and move towards a brighter future while remembering the losses of the past.**

 **Here is to staying safe in a mad world.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Over the next two years Team Phantom was called out on multiple occasions, sometimes singularly and sometimes together as people began to accept that the worlds were going to merge. While the realms were merging their group slowly split apart. Danny had been their center and their leader however Danny was gone and unfortunately their individual lives were calling to them, as well as problems only they could help solve. Tucker left first when Valerie had her baby, they named her Vivi like Tucker had told Maddie before she died. Danni was next as she went to the ghost zone with Pandora to help her and many other ghosts get fully prepared for the transition as it slowly sank in. Jazz was doing the same thing except with human nations. Sam helped out where she could but found herself traveling all over the world as she desperately tried to find what was missing in her life. It was almost a compulsion and over time she found that she hated staying in one place for very long. Sam wondered if this is what Danni had felt like when she had left when she and Danny were 14 and promised herself that she would ask her the next time she saw her. Over time Sam simply wandered staying in both the human world as well as the ghost zone, easily traveling back and forth using natural portals. She even stayed with Undergrowth for a while and being with him was the closest she felt to being complete again. As she traveled Sam could tell that the world was steadily becoming a very strange place.

As a whole the first thing people noticed was the sky. Its usual rich blue color had started to fade changing to a color that was something between blue and the green of the ghost zone. The clouds swirled in odd patterns in places all over the world and portals sprang up randomly all over the place. The sun was soon no longer a singular point in the sky either. Its brightness didn't diminish and it still rose and fell just as it always had but it was no longer a bright traceable orb in the sky. It was as if someone had placed a colored cloud layer between the earth and the sun. The moon was the same way and you could no longer see the stars that Danny had loved so much. At night there were bright points in the sky that changed and shifted looking very similar to stars but they weren't and scientist actually had no idea what they were. They labeled them as ghost fires or wisps but no ghost claimed them as their creations. The next really noticeable change was earth itself. New plants and animals began to appear as old ones vanished, the oceans seemed to shrink and the sky seemed to get a lot bigger. Landmasses began to appear in the sky starting out looking like they were simply mirages or tricks of the light but eventually they began to solidify becoming solid pieces of matter that floated overhead. People discovered that some of these islands had strange rules when it came to gravity amongst other things. Around this time ghost lairs began to fully cross over their doors appearing in the sky or ground and sometimes even in human dwellings. They eventually figured out that the ghost lairs were settling in areas that were the closest to them in climate, temperament, and location in the human realm. Pandora's realm settled near Greece, Doras near England, Walker took up residence on Alcatraz, and so on.

As the realms fully became one, several problems began to spring up. Technology started to go haywire due to the steadily increasing rates of ectoplasm and unless there was a filter on it, some things wouldn't work at all. Ghosts on the other hand found themselves lacking energy due to the lowered rate of ectoplasm in the environment. Many turned to emotional energy but that quickly started causing problems for the human populations. Finally a solution was found by accident and by the GIW of all agencies. They had been running experiments on crystals and the frequencies they vibrated at hoping to find one that acted as a shield for technology. Instead they found a certain crystal that could absorb minute traces of ectoenergy, concentrate it and rerelease it steadily like a battery. These crystals were fairly common in the new merged world and once they were awakened by a ghost the crystals could easily be carried to supplement ghost's energy cravings. The crystals were raked by their purity and the more pure a crystal the more energy it could release. Many ghosts searched for higher purity crystals to store in their respective lairs to give them a safe place to restore their energies. Ghosts also found that in this new merged world that they needed to eat and sleep fairly regularly, nowhere near as much as humans had to of course but it was no longer something they did on a whim. A major problem that sprang up was that travel for humans and ghosts alike became difficult. Planes couldn't easily fly due to the new floating landmasses and even the geography seemed to shift over time changing roads and railway tracks. Then a startling solution was found completely by accident. A child while playing in a field fell into a portal that sprang up. Several hours later the child had shown up back at home soaked in salt water, sunburned, and holding a star fish telling of an adventure he had on the beach. However, the nearest beach was hundreds of miles away. When investigated it was discovered that the portal opened only at a certain time of day and stayed open for only so long. More of these portals were discovered and slowly they found that the portals connected places around the world. A new mode of transportation from city to city around the world was slowly worked out and they found they could build on the natural portal and basically force it to stay open by stabilizing it. This was done in several key areas so that people could travel as they wished.

Many other things changed as well. Some areas geography and constructs were very much like the ghost zone had been, where humans could walk through walls or the ground, while other areas were human zones where ghosts could do the same. The strangest areas were where the zones mixed perfectly. This mix did one of two things. These areas were either impervious to both humans and ghosts, or it was a literal mix where one wall might be ghost proof and the next human proof. Children loved to play in areas such as these running through some walls to escape there pursuer and sometimes forgetting and running smack into other walls. All in all bloody noses became a common occurrence in children of all ages.

One other major thing occurred with the children that concerned many as time went on. Some children were being born as half ghosts. Vivi, Valerie and Tuckers daughter was one of the first half ghost children recognized by the public. Many others soon followed and as the realms settled the rate of half ghost children was on the rise. To be completely fair with the way the world now was it was actually a perfect environment for them to grow up and live in.


	16. Memories End

**Oh my gosh…. Ladies and gentlemen we have finally reached the end of the memory arc! It only took 47 pages in a Word document and a ton of hours but we are finally here! I hope that any one reading is having fun seeing how it all plays out. Next time we will finally be getting to the main story!**

 **Here is to staying safe in a mad world.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Ghosts and humans learned to live together and in many cases have family units together. There were some cities that were pure human cities and a few rarer that were pure ghost cities, for the most part however most cities, villages, and towns were a mix. There were still problems in the world and a major one reappeared after the realms had fully become one. Dark Parmius made his comeback, or at least he tried too. The world was furious at him over the merging of the realms and when he reappeared it didn't take much convincing for everyone to come together once more. He tried to convince the populace to come under his rule peacefully and was violently refused in every sense. This absolute refusal shredded whatever patience Dark Parmius had collected in his period of hiding and initiated a second Merging War. Unable to convince the newly combined world to come under his rule with paltry words he decided a show of force was necessary. Believing the world was weak, pitiful, and had no ability to defend itself without Dannys leadership Dark Parmius marched on several cities with an army that was torn to pieces. He was resoundly beaten in several key battles and driven off away from the heavily populated areas. With the constant defeats he was pushed back in a steady retreat across the world before turning tail and fleeing altogether, sacrificing what little of his army he had left to aid in his escape. He retreated to what people began to refer to as the Dark Lands. It was a large area that had once been underwater and because of the salt content as well as the extremely hard nature of the rock nothing could grow there. Almost all the rocks were grey to a pitch black for the most part and the area in general looked horribly ominous, as well as very cliché for a villain. To be fair it was a treacherous place for the living as well as the dead and it was impossible to drive Dark Parmius out of it. Several attempts were made to destroy Dark Parmius once and for all in the Dark Lands but all attempts ended in failure. Knowing the beings of the world were unable to drive him out Dark Parmius made the area his stronghold and called it his new kingdom. Dark Parmius still wanted to rule the entire world though and like a petulant child he refused to give up, often times resorting to nasty tricks in an attempt to get what he wished. He released new creatures and abominations upon the world some of them having no purpose except to destroy. He also developed some new technology though Tucker and others didn't know if he was creating it or forcing kidnapped scientist to make everything for him. Sam figured it was the second option and rescue missions were routinely funded to try and save people that Dark Parmius had captured, for no one could forget Vlad as well as the horrors of his Goon factories.

One particularly nasty piece of technology that Dark Parmius created were synergy bands; at least that is what Tucker called them. If put on two different ghosts of vastly different power the band would shove the stronger ghosts energy through the weaker one and cause an overload that would basically vaporize the weaker ghost. Once the weaker ghost was gone however the band would kill the stronger ghost by simply sucking all the energy out of it. If the ghosts were about the same strength they could both survive the energy funneling it just hurt like hell and exhausted them. If put on a human and ghost the bands reacted the same way and most of the time it killed the human almost instantly. Very few humans survived getting synergy bands being placed on then if the other was a ghost unless it was a weak ghost. On the other hand if two bands were placed on two different people no immediate side effects were found. Although if one of the humans were killed the synergy band on the other human would fry, this would either cause massive damage to the limb or outright kill the human it was on. The bad thing was that the bands couldn't be removed except by three ways on any being no matter the combination and none of them were pleasant. One way was the weaker being could kill the stronger one. This would cause a short or something and the band would fall off. Another way was for the two beings to combine into one form. This trick only worked if they were both ghosts and it was Skulker and Technus that discovered this method when they were hit with the bands. They called themselves Skulktech or Techskulk depending on which one you asked. The third way was for them to both die because once one died the other would die soon after. Technically there was a fourth and final way that Tucker used but it was dangerous for both humans as well as ghosts. Sometimes Tucker could get the bands to deactivate and sometimes no matter what he tried he couldn't make it work.

Sam helped in multiple battles against Dark Parmius leading several attacks herself. Tucker, Valerie, Jazz, and Danni often joined her when they could. Then one day when Sam was visiting a small town out near Undergrowths new domain there was a massive attack lead by Dark Parmius himself. Sam was forced to fight against them on her own, and she fought a losing battle. She managed to protect the people and hold off the worst of the marauding Goons before finally getting knocked out and captured. When she woke Sam realized she was in a lab and felt a dreadful fear fill her. It was then that Sam realized that the attack had been planned to capture her and her alone. She didn't know where she was but Sam realized that there was not a very good chance of rescue. Sam steeled herself for what was going to come and Dark Parmius wasted no time torturing her trying to get information from her about defenses that had been put in place around the world to repel him. All ghosts had a unique ecto signature but as some ghost found they could trick some devices like how humans could disguise themselves. Dark Parmius however had a truly unique ecto signature that couldn't be disguised due to his being a combination of two ghosts. Team Phantom had been able to train most defenses to repel him even if they couldn't always repel the Goons and other creations. Dark Parmius also wanted to know where Danny had hidden the crown and ring. No matter how many times Sam tried to explain than she didn't know Dark Parmius wouldn't believe her. Believing she was simply refusing to tell him Dark Parmius resorted to trying to steal her memories which would allow him to find out the answers he wanted at his leisure. Sam didn't know the ghost that he brought in, it was one she had never met. Dark Parmius forced the ghost to use its powers on Sam stealing all her memories and containing them within something that represented her power, which in Sams case happened to be seeds.

Dark Parmius couldn't access these seed memories however and in a fit of rage he destroyed the poor ghost but was unable to destroy the memory seeds. Deciding she was now useless to him Dark Parmius decided that it would be best to use her in his newest experiments. This meant transporting her and Dark Parmius sent Sam under heavy guard to one of his factories. Team Phantom managed to rescue her with Undergrowths help and was horrified when they found that Sam knew none of them. Afraid that telling her anything, even her own name might lead to her never recovering her memories, they allowed Undergrowth to take her to his new domain far away from prying eyes and potentially dangerous evil ghosts. Sam had lived happily for years under his tutelage and guidance as he secretly grew her memory seeds into the field of roses she now stood in. Dannys grave marker in the center had been a trigger, one that even Undergrowth hadn't been sure of. It had worked though and the newly turned white field of memory roses now swayed in light breeze marking a new beginning for Sam.


	17. Starting a Journey

**Made it! Now the story shall begin in earnest. This is cause for celebration! (At least in my head it is.) Hope everyone is enjoying the ride so far!**

 **Here is to staying safe in a mad world.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

"Undergrowth." Sam whispered her voice slightly muffled she pulled back a little and looked up at him. "You have taken care of me for so long and I can never repay you. Why would you do all this?"

Undergrowths facial features pulled up in a kind of smile. "It was a joy to help return your memories and you have helped me grow this area into a stunning garden that helps feed as well as take care of millions of ghosts and humans. You have already more than repaid me. You are like a daughter to me Little Flower any time your presence is near me there is happiness in all I do."

"Little Flower?" Sam asked as she realized he had yet to use her name.

Undergrowth shrugged "I had to call you something and I did not want to call you by any aliases you may have had before. Since you didn't seem to have an aversion to it and came to the name I left it as such. Is it displeasing to you?"

Sam shook her head "No but only you get to use it." Sam answered chuckling.

She was remembering when Undergrowth had taken over Amity Park as well as the first time she and Danny had run into him after that. Neither time had been pretty nor had either time been fun. In fact until Sam had received her ghost powers Undergrowth had really been a nasty weed to deal with. "You have mellowed so much." Sam whispered as she took a step back out of his arms.

Undergrowth snorted, deciding to ignore her comment. "Are all of your memories functional?" he asked truly concerned for her well being.

Sam nodded then frowned. "I think they are. I'm not missing any major time gaps or anything, at least I don't think I am. How would I even tell?"

Undergrowth shrugged unsure. "I could not say. However I am glad you have regained at least the bulk of your memories and knowledge because my dear the time has come when you must leave my side."

That got Sams attention. "What is that supposed to mean?" she demanded "I mean I know I traveled a lot before I was captured and all but I'm actually quite comfortable here now."

Undergrowth sighed "Dark Parmius is searching for you and the rest of Team Phantom because he believes you all hold the keys to finding the crown of fire and ring of rage. The rest of your family is already in hiding but I could not send you anywhere until you had regained your memories. Now that you have you must leave because Dark Parmius is coming here and I would rather not have you captured again."

Sam gaped at him too stunned to think up a retort. Undergrowth continued on a little more gently clearly concerned by her lack of speech. "You will need to leave soon to stay ahead of them. I will have no issues staying out of their way and when they find nothing they will move on however, before you go I have some things for you." To his right a bag grew from the earth and Sam recognized it. It was her travel bag and it had everything she needed to survive just about anywhere.

"My bag!" Sam cried as she retrieved it from the plants and hugged it to her chest. Dannys parents had made it for her modeling it after her spider backpack from high school. It was purple and black, made of an extremely strong, durable ecto repelling fabric, the same type of fabric as her human clothes. The fabric could take one of Dannys wails head on and while it would give out eventually it could stand up to it. As a bonus the fabric only repelled ecto energy that was directed at it aggressively. This meant that the fabric didn't interfere with her powers at all and she could still use some her powers like invisibility as a human. The legs of the bag were actually functional as well. They could be used as straps, bindings, were removable, and one of the legs was actually a large length of ecto resistant cord. The bag itself was larger on the inside than it would seem and when she opened it Sam realized it was fully stocked.

"You forgot these." Undergrowth said clearly amused at her reaction.

He held her double scabbard ecto dagger and the side pouch that held her seed bombs and whatever else she needed to be quickly accessible. Sam took them hooking the pouch and dagger into place around her waist sighing in relief at the familiar weight. Her pouch was full of premade seed bombs and two decent sized pure ectocrystals. Sam pulled them out hissing in surprise as she touched them because she could literally feel the ecto energy coming off of them. They were strong enough that one of them could probably support a small ghost lair on its own. Just one of them would supplement her energy enough that if she didn't want to Sam wouldn't even need to eat or sleep to stay active. Not that she would ever do that since it would be really bad for her human half however these crystals were powerful and on any market very expensive. "Undergrowth I can't take these." She said holding them back out towards him.

Undergrowth shrugged moving back "I won't take them back as I have plenty already, besides you will need them to supplement your own energy. Also in you backpack I have included one of my plants that will pull water from the air and store it so you will never need to search for water."

Sam leveled a glare at him as she pulled the gourd shaped plant from her backpack and wrapped it into one of the backpacks net like legs for now. It would expand as it filled and she could always dump the excess water into a bottle so she would always have more. Though she wasn't happy about it Undergrowth was right about the crystals, so to keep them safe Sam slipped one of the two crystals into a hidden pocket on the inside of her crop top. She hid the other in a secret compartment at the bottom of the backpack within a fake seam.

As she placed the two crystals in their respective positions Sam asked curiously "How long have you been planning this anyways, and how long have I been here?"

Undergrowth shrugged looking a little uncomfortable. "I am not sure Little Flower. Time flows different for ghosts like me. A hundred years could pass and it would be the same as if only days were passing. I have been preparing for your departure since I first brought you here and managed to start growing out your memory seeds."

Sam nodded in understanding "A rough guess?"

Undergrowth paused knowing she wouldn't like his answer but there was no way to soften the blow. "Several years Little Flower. I do not know the exact amount but your memories took a while to fully grow and mature because it was all of them. I also couldn't speed up the process with my energy for fear of affecting them in any adverse way."

Sam swallowed hard. She had been oblivious and out of the loop for several years. To a ghost like Undergrowth that could mean anywhere from two to ten years. She really hoped that it wasn't ten years and couldn't imagine how things had changed in the world while she had been out of commission. Slowly Sam straightened and slid the backpack onto her shoulders. It was decently heavy and if a normal person tried to lift it they might have a hard time. Like Danny becoming a half ghost had greatly enhanced her strength and senses. Eyeing Undergrowth Sam realized she didn't know what to do. She had just woken up and she didn't really want to leave, especially if Dark Parmius was coming and might pose a danger to Undergrowth and his garden.

Undergrowth raised a hand and a large bulb came up from the ground. It almost looked like a seed pod that he had once stored humans in when he tried to turn them into fertilizer. Sam eyed it warily and Undergrowth chuckled recognizing that look.

"It's simply a transport pod Little Flower, it will take you to the very edge of my territories. Besides your power and abilities have grown to the point that your power could easily rival mine if you so wished. I don't think I could hold you or force you to leave if you truly didn't want to."

Sam blushed at his complement not really wanting to believe that she was stronger than him."What about the Goons and Dark Parmius though? It doesn't matter if he sends a duplicate, it will still be strong enough to do damage." Sam asked but she walked to the pod regardless.

"Goons make excellent fertilizer." Undergrowth growled the air and plants shivering at the tone of his voice.

Sam laughed unaffected by his tone and climbed into the pod still a touch worried for him. "Are you sure you don't want me to stay for a while? It's the least I can do."

Undergrowth shook his head. "Your family needs you more than I do. When everything is taken care of come back and visit. Bring the little girl Vivi as well I enjoyed her company."

That comment opened a whole new line of questions in Sams mind but before she could even start the pod shut and slipped under the ground. Sam growled and knowing Undergrowth could hear her through his connection with the plants she said "That wasn't very fair. When I come back we are going to have to have a long chat about the etiquette of sending people off." Sam stayed silent for a moment gathering her thoughts and when she spoke again her voice had softened in affection. "Thank you for all you did and for helping me return to the way I was. I will come back and when I do I will bring good news, hopefully of Dark Parmius demise."

The pod was comfortable and just the right temperature although Sam was glad that she wasn't claustrophobic. The ride to the edge of Undergrowths territory took almost 30 minutes but Sam didn't mind as it gave her plenty of time to sort out what her next move was. Finally she felt the pod slow and moments later it stopped. The front of the pod peeled open making a step like structure to make it easy to climb down. The moment her feet touched the ground the pod folded back up and disappeared underground the earth trickling back into place. There was a ring of trees just in front of her and Sam recognized it as the edge of Undergrowths lands. Behind her the plants were orderly with paths peeking out between slightly defined rows. Before her lay a slightly ominous forest branches tangling together and plants trying to choke the life from each other as they fought to survive. At these thoughts Sam laughed out loud.

"I've been around Undergrowth for far too long." Sam muttered to herself and taking one last look at the lands that had sheltered her for the last few years started forward on her new journey.


	18. Confrontation

**In this chapter we get to see Sam travel and meet some new people! Hopefully it will go well? In other news I was going to post yesterday but I realized if I did my next post would be on Thanksgiving since I have been posting every three days lately. Oh well… here is your next installment. Enjoy and for all those who celebrate Happy Thanksgiving!**

 **Here is to staying safe in a mad world.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

It took Sam well over a week to get through the worst tangle of the forest. She often had to go intangible to get through some of the nastiest bramble tangles and she was stalked three separate times by large predators. The first two followed her for several hours but eventually decided she wasn't worth the effort. The third one stalked her for over a day and even made a pass at her. Sam thankfully heard it coming and shot a semi strong ectoblast at its hindquarters. She hoped it would get the message and leave because she really didn't want to have to kill the poor thing. Thankfully after being hit by her attack the beast had run off yelping and didn't return. It would have been easier to just fly over the forest but Sam wasn't sure where Dark Parmius forces were coming from and she didn't want to be spotted by anything else that might rat her out. So she trudged on the forest slowly becoming less wild with every step. Sam found a game path and stayed on it not having any other real direction to choose from. After two more days of the forest the trees began to thin and Sam realized that she was near what she hoped was the end of the forest. It was and by the time the last filaments of light faded from the sky she reached the trees edge. Sam decided to rest there for the night. She could easily travel at night since her night vision was as good as any ghosts but she needed a good night's sleep since the forests night predators had made her nervous. She found a rocky outcrop near the forests edge and opening a seed bomb scattered a line of seeds in a semicircle with the rock as the back. Calling to the seeds with her power they exploded into a frenzied growth surrounding her with a living wall of wood. Some of the vines curled under her making a soft pad for her to sleep on. A thin vine crept up the walls of her hollow putting out white orb like flowers that glowed softly. With a tired sigh Sam pulled heavy but thin looking cylinder from her bag, pressing the end down she twisted it sharply to the side. A thick warm sleeping bag popped out of it and once again she was grateful for the Fentons technology. Most of her gear was made in some way by the Fentons and although they had seemed ditzy or clumsy to others she and her friends had long ago realized that they had been geniuses in their own right. Sam sniffed as tears threatened and flopped back onto the sleeping bag. She missed them and her family.

"Tomorrows a new day." Sam muttered and ate an apple she had in her bag being careful to save the seeds so she could grow more in the future. Once she was finished she fell asleep curled up on the bag the soft glow of the white flowers dying as the night wore on.

Waking up the next day started a new line of thinking for Sam. She hadn't really had any ideas of where to go before, in fact Sam now realized that for the past week or so she had been practically stumbling around in a daze. For several minutes Sam wondered if this is what amnesia patients felt like when they finally got their memories back. Shaking herself Sam called the plants surrounding her back to their seed forms before packing her stuff back in her bag. That done and breakfast eaten Sam stood then picked a direction to start walking in. As she walked Sam made a list in her head. First she needed to find a city, then she needed to find where Tucker or Danni was, then she needed to find a way to get to either one or both of them.

She walked for several hours and although she wasn't tired she stopped and rested periodically. The land around her changed slowly going from a dense forest to rocky scrubland with clusters of trees here and there. Boulders of all shapes and sizes dotted the landscape with hills swelling the ground every so often. She switched into her ghost form a few times since out here she could see for miles; flying was also a heck of a lot faster than walking. After spending another day and night moving fairly quickly she finally found a thin dirt road cutting its way through the landscape. Eventually it turned into a paved road and Sam knew at last that she was on the right track to finding a city of some type. Later that same day she made contact with a group of people although she would soon wish she hadn't.

She had spied them from a distance and assumed that they were a traveling caravan. They were several miles ahead of her and Sam had only spotted them because of her enhanced senses as she stood on top of a particularly large hill. They were moving fairly slow and Sam decided it would be best to approach them as a human. She needed information and most ghosts unless they were living with or within human cities didn't really care about the passage of time. As she got closer to the caravan some things about it set her off and made her rethink her idea of coming into contact with them. The women were all in what looked like homemade dresses with cloaks or aprons over them, the men were in trousers and shirts that were tucked in all the same way and Sam couldn't see any children though she figured that they could be in the wagons. Looking down at her own attire Sam decided to wear a cloak to cover her clothes since even if she didn't want to talk to them she would end up passing them on the road before dark. Her cloak was black and stored in another thick rounded canister like her sleeping bag. Several things were actually stored in the canister which was also Fenton made. The Fentons had figured out how to compress non living things like cloth into small canisters making traveling with suitcases completely unnecessary. The suitcase canister reminded Sam of the Fenton thermoses and had one single drawback. Each canister could hold almost two weeks of clothes depending on their bulk but to get anything out you had to empty the entire canister out which was why they didn't get mass produced. The bug had never been fixed and the canister she had was no exception as it dumped its entire contents out onto her backpack and road. With a sigh Sam slipped her cloak around her neck and packed everything back inside the canister taking the time to see what she had for clothes. She wanted a shower sometime in the near future and hoped that she would find a city sometime in the next day or so. Or at least a lake, roughing it and being in a war had made Sam into a very unpicky person when it came to being able to bathe.

Sam caught up to the people about two hours before sunset because they had pulled off along the side of the road to make camp. The hood on her cloak was up hiding her face both from them and the sun as she passed the people by. Sam knew she had been spotted several meters back by the people and as she came even with their camp two younger men broke off what they were doing and swiftly approached her. They cut her off by stopping directly in front of her forcing her to stop in turn. Sam rolled her eyes as she stopped realizing that the entire camp had stopped working at this point to watch the confrontation.

"Who are you and what do you want?" the larger of the two men asked suspiciously.

Sam growled under her breath his attitude instantly irking her. "I'm simply passing you on the road. There is no reason to be hostile or to stop me." She said forcing her voice to at least sound pleasant even if she didn't mean it.

"You're a woman?!" the younger smaller man exclaimed

Sam heard several gasps from the camp to her right and she couldn't help the small smile that crossed her lips. Flicking her head back slightly Sam knocked the hood off her head letting it fall to her back. She didn't really need it anymore with the sun going down anyways.

"Yes I am. Is there going to be a problem?" Sam growled her voice no longer as pleasant.

The larger man eyed her greedily as if she were a new toy while the smaller man ducked his head and slowly started to back away trying to tug the larger male off with him. Now that she was looking, Sam figured that the two of them were probably brothers. The eldest swatted his brothers hand away and took a step closer to Sam making the hairs on her neck stand straight up.

"Let me through please." Sam said her voice holding a warning that the younger man took to heart. He got out of the way swiftly moving back to the edge of the road.

"How about you stay for a bit and we can discuss traveling together privately?" The older boy said a leer crossing his features as he folded his arms and looked down his nose at her, clearly thinking that he looked very intimidating.

Sam almost laughed at the sight, but she managed to hold it in while grounding out "NO, for the last time let me pass." At this range she could easily sense his intentions and she for one refused to play nice. Slowly, being careful not to move the cloak, Sam slid a hand around to the hilt of her ectodagger. She didn't like the idea of fighting this idiot young man but the way that he was looking at her made her very cautious and angry.

"That woman is too much for you or any other one of you idiot young boys to handle. Back off before she puts a blade or bullet in ya." An elderly voice croaked from the side lines.

Sam could see the elder out of the corner of her eye slowly stumping his way to the edge of the road. A young woman in an apron holding a small child walked with him.

The younger man at the edge of the road took this as his chance to leave and ducked his head walking swiftly back into the camp but the older larger male puffed his chest up in outrage. "You think you can hurt me?!" he roared at Sam spittle flying from his lips.

Sam clenched her hand on the daggers handle and smiled a wicked nasty smile. "I haven't said a single word about hurting you but if you would like to be schooled in the art of fighting bring it on."

In hindsight Sam figured that she should have probably given a meek "no" and tried to walk on again. However, being stuck out in the middle of nowhere with only plants, no memories, stuck in ghost form because she didn't remember she was half human, and under Undergrowths tutelage for so long meant she hadn't had a good fight in a very long time. Plus from what she could see this particular male needed his ego punctured in a bad way.

"Boy…" the elder called but the rest of his words were lost as the young man charged Sam with a roar.

Sam made a split second decision. The man had no weapon in his hands and was charging her in such an uncoordinated way that Sam knew she would have no need to pull her blade much less go ghost. Instead she ducked under his wildly swinging fist, stuck her booted foot between his legs, and as he crashed face first into the ground she sat on him pinning his arms as she did.

"Any other questions?" Sam queried calmly as the man struggled and failed to throw her off.

The elder threw back his head and cackled for several seconds while most of the camp gazed at Sam in shocked silence. Taking several deep breaths and coughing slightly from laughing so hard, the elder slowly stumped his way out into the road the girl following close behind.

"Get off of me!" the young man snarled his voice muffled. By this time the elder was within reach of the two of them and before the young man could say another word he raised his stick up before cracking it down hard on the back of the man's skull. The man squealed and grabbed at his head trying to roll out of the canes reach. Sam had jumped off him the moment the cane had started its upward trajectory.

"Next time listen!" the elder snarled "You have only been with us for a short time and have thus annoyed me twice, do so a third time and you will be cleaning the latrine areas for the next month!"

The young man whimpered but managed a nod before scrambling back to a safe distance. He gave Sam a hate filled glare then hurried back into the small camp disappearing behind a wagon.

"Please forgive his rudeness he has recently come to us from another clan that was far more…distrusting." The elder said looking Sam up and down his gaze appraising.

Sam ducked her own head feeling a bit shy under his gaze. "Part of it was my fault. I sort of antagonized him."

The elder cracked his stick against the ground in annoyance. "Nonsense he needed a lesson and I'm glad it was you who taught him. You would have been perfectly within your rights if you had killed him and you simply sat on him. He should know better than to attack random strangers on the road. To thank you for forgiving his hostility and stupidity will you join me in my tent for dinner this evening?"

"Uh…" Sam answered taken aback by the change in topic. "I was hoping to travel more before stopping in the night."

The elder shook his head. "It is dangerous to travel in these parts once the sun goes down youngster. You may stay in our camp with our protection."

"Do I have a choice?" Sam asked a little sarcastically

The elder grinned "As you younger folk say…nope."

Sam had to laugh at his attitude and accepted his invitation although she decided to keep a close eye on what went on around her. With a sigh she followed them into their camp realizing that she probably wasn't going to be getting a lot of sleep that night.


	19. The Living Clans

**Ha ha poor Sam has been on her own for too long! Oh well she never seemed to get along with people her age in the show either. In other news I am stuffed from yesterday and don't want to move… At least my fingers still work as I fight the impending food coma. I hope everyone out there that celebrates had a good turkey day!**

 **Here is to staying safe in a mad world.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

The camp was a work in progress as the people around them set up. Laundry lines were being hung up, carts were being unpacked, children looking like miniature copies of adults ran helter kilter getting underfoot as they played. The camp was strange though, it almost reminded Sam of a renaissance fair or something similar. An idea or maybe a warning pinged at the back of her mind but before she could really figure it out they arrived at their destination. They had led her right to the elder's tent and after the old man was settled with the small child playing on the floor the younger girl left the three of them alone. The tent was a decently large round area with plenty of headroom while the floor was a plush carpet. Pillows were scattered about the carpet and some toys lay piled in a heap to one side. The child had made a bee line for the toys and he sat holding what looked to be a very well loved teddy bear. Sam smiled at the child before she sat comfortably on her knees half leaning against some pillows facing the elder. The elder lay across some of his own pillows looking very comfortable with his eyes closed. Sam fidgeted a little feeling for the first time in a long time like she was a little kid in trouble for some unknown misdeed. The child was silent too as he played and after a few minutes he curled up on a pillow with the bear and went to sleep. The silence stretched on almost unbearably for several minutes more before Sam forced herself to settle down then relax. She took several deep breaths forcing herself to be happy that she was off her feet and let her eyes close as her other senses opened. It took her a minute to really relax into her power but once she did Sam could hear everything going on as the other people around her set up the small camp. Arguing, children crying, people in general yelling, talking, laughing, it seemed for a moment that she was in a small town rather than a caravan made up of a few small carts. A small smile flitted across her face as she listened not having realized how much she had missed contact with other people.

"Ah so you are a halfling." The elders voice said breaking into Sam's trance like state.

Her eyes flew open and she hit the ground with a thump cursing as she did so. She hadn't even realized she had been floating much less accessing her powers in her human form. Rubbing her knees Sam looked up at the old man.

"Does that change anything?" she snapped feeling annoyed at her lack of control.

The elder looked sad "If our other clan was here they would try to kill you." He said bluntly and Sam felt a chill all the way to her core.

She realized who these people were, why they were dressed so strange, and why they didn't seem to have anything remotely advanced technology wise. "You're a Living Clan." Sam stated just as blunt.

The elder cocked an eyebrow at her and shrugged. "Not totally. We don't kill our halfling children. We give them up or if the mothers refuse to let go we release them to society. We simply do not wish to associate with the dead."

Sam swallowed hard. These people had cropped up at the start of the Merging Wars. They called themselves Living clans and refused to have any contact with ghosts. As the war continued their ideals became worse and more violent. They began attacking ghosts using old spells, blood blossoms, and retreated from society in general. The worst happened when halfa children began to be born. They began murdering them and all kinds of other atrocities. As stories began to circulate of their rituals and the clans began to try and convert people their life style society had enough. Most people turned their backs on the clans refusing to trade or associate with them. Since the wars with Dark Parmius were still going on many of the craziest clans were captured by Goons or wiped out during the fighting in general. The few clans that survived the wars and the merging were far tamer but still strict about their no dead policy.

Slowly Sam stood she couldn't hear anyone around the tent which meant she could easily go ghost and disappear before anyone could attempt to ground her with blood blossoms or worse archaic spells. "I think I will take my leave now. Thank you for your hospitality." She said as she stood shifting her cloak and waiting for the elders answer.

The man sighed and waved a hand. "I may be old but even I can see where the fools before me went wrong. Halfa children are being born more often than not and our world itself has merged with the one of the dead. Soon the clans will be nothing but elders and after we are gone they will just be another footnote in the history books."

As he said this the child began to cough while still sleeping. Sam froze listening to the child cough, spasms starting to wrack his tiny frame. The cough sounded wrong to her so Sam swiftly moved to the child's side studying his physical body and testing his energy field. She found that he was running a fever and his energy field was for lack of a better explanation sick.

The spasms settled and Sam looked up at the elder and with a jolt of understanding she said "You're both sick."

"My time is coming soon." He answered nodding "But my grandson should not have to suffer as I am."

Sam wanted to laugh. "Actually your energy fields are just totally messed up and you both seem to have a really bad chest cold. Neither will kill you though, just make you really miserable, although this will cause more damage to the child than you. Since your symptoms started you have been able to see other people's energy fields haven't you. It's how you could tell I was a halfa."

The old man gaped at her "Yes." Was all he said and Sam nodded

"I can fix you if you would like." Sam whispered and the old man sighed. For a moment Sam was sure he would refuse but then he said softly "Only if you do the same for my grandson. We were fishing and got attacked by a half beast. While trying to escape we fell in a portal and something strange happened. We found our way out and got sick. I began to get better but I found I could see things I never had been able to before. My grandson however is still sick and his mother will not take him to a hospital with ghosts in it."

"Agreed." Sam said quickly "I can place a slow healing on him so it will seem as if it's a natural mixture of herbs that fix him. It sounds like you got zapped by some ectoenergy and your having a bad reaction. There is a pretty good chance you will keep the ability to see energy fields even after I heal you though."

The old man shrugged and Sam allowed her hands to start glowing as she began to heal the child first now that she had permission. His grandson was an easy fix and the elder was even easier to fix. While she healed him she even helped strengthen his bones as well as the rest of his body. After she was done healing them both the elder called the mother back to the tent and Sam gave her some herbs that really would strengthen the immune system. The little boy was already sitting up and breathing far easier by the time the mother came back. She was surprised by the sudden change in her son but she accepted the herbs and explanation before scooping her son up from the tent floor gratefully. She and the elder talked for a while after the mother had left and Sam learned several new things about the clans and the lay of the land around them. The elder was a good conversationalist and he was easy to talk to. They spoke for several hours as they shared stories and they only stopped talking because the young mother came back to announce that the food was ready.


	20. Assault

**Well here ya go a nice longish chapter! We are wrapping things up with Sams first run in with other people. Hopefully her next encounter will be better? Hehehe I know something you don't know! Also reviews are totally welcome and so are any questions!**

 **Here is to staying safe in a mad world.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

When Sam and the elder came outside they found it was dark and while she could still travel on her own Sam decided to take up the elders offer of spending the night. She was a little nervous since these people were part of a Living Clan but she had healed the elder and since accepting help from ghosts was against their rules Sam figured it should be safe enough. Dinner was a fun affair and once she told them she was a vegetarian the women fed her enough veggie stew to make her feel as if she were going to pop. She was placed in spare woman's tent for the night and given a pad to sleep on. Sam left her bag packed and slept in her cloak. The elder was right about the people being far tamer than most life clans but they were all still human and as such they were very curious. Sam didn't want them going through her things and she was very careful to not let her bag out of her sight. Deciding that she wanted to get up early to start traveling Sam went to bed early curling up on the pad while using her bag as a pillow. She slept lightly and Sam supposed that was the only reason she got the warning she did.

"Where did the stranger sleep?" a voice hissed outside the darkened tent. A mumble answered him and Sam went invisible as the tent flap jerked up letting the faint moonlight in. To any human it was almost too dark to see although Sam could see as if it were a full moon outside. Yet again she thanked her ghost half for a very useful ability.

"I thought you said she was in here!" the larger brother snapped no longer trying to be quiet.

"I don't know brother." A younger voice answered sounding very weary. "We shouldn't be in here either…"

His voice was cut off by the sound of flesh hitting flesh and Sam could see hit elder brother had struck him.

"Shuddup she embarrassed me and she's gonna be made sorry for it." The elder brother slurred.

At this point Sam realized the older boy was drunk. Sam lay there for a moment contemplating her next move. She had several choices. At this point she had gotten several hours of sleep and could easily leave and continue traveling with no problem. Or she could take these two idiots out and alert the rest of the camp to their stupidity. After thinking on it Sam decided on a mixed plan. There was no one else in the tent and Sam decided that disappearing and alerting someone to their foolishness was probably the best option. Staying completely silent Sam pressed her bag to her chest before turning intangible before rolling through the tent wall. Once outside she lay still for a moment listing to the elder brother punch his sibling as he forced him to hunt for her in the pitch black tent. Sam released her powers and once she got to her feet she located the nearest watch man doing rounds. She made up a story of how she had decided to go to the bathroom and came back to scary voices sounding from the tent. Knowing they expected it Sam pretended to be fearful and upset over the whole thing causing the man to look into the matter himself. They went to the tent and found the two brothers still in her tent although the eldest was in the middle of beating his brother and therefore too busy to notice their arrival. The watchman was so shocked by the sight he simply watched as the elder brother continued to kick his younger brother on the ground. Sam realized the younger boy was unconscious and infuriated by the older boys actions stepped in. Before the older boy even registered her presence she knocked him out and threw him through the front of the tent.

"Hey!" the watchman shouted in surprise but Sam cut him off.

"This boy needs medical assistance. Don't worry about the older one I only knocked him out."

The watchman stared at her blankly for a moment until Sam snapped "Go get some help!"

The watchman jumped and ran for the tent yelling for help. Sam ignored him and knowing she only had a few minutes before people started to arrive she pressed her hands to the unconscious boys side checking him over. Sam hissed in hatred of his older brother as her power swept through him. The boy was badly injured and had internal bleeding. She knew that if she were not present he would never wake up. Careful not to heal any of the cuts, even though some would need stitches, or the bruising to his skin she took care of all the internal injuries the boy had. She only partially mended the broken arm since it wasn't life threatening, she did however totally heal his ribs not wanting one of them to fragment and puncture a lung or his other organs again. She healed all of his organs although she knew he would probably be vomiting and peeing blood for several days as his body caught up to the fact that it was no longer horribly injured. She was finishing up as several people burst into the tent with torches. Sam had bandages in her hands pressing them to a nasty and heavily bleeding gash on his head. The odd light from the torches as well as the gauze hid the tell tale glow of her hands. By the time two women shoved through the throng of men in the doorway and dropped to Sams side she was done healing his more deadly wounds. She was more than happy to hand over her position to one of the women and shift sideways so she could scoot away from them and rest against the tent wall. Putting her bag in her lap and pulling her knees to her forehead Sam closed her eyes. She hated healing someone that fast. It put a large strain on her mind as well as her power and while she could do it several times over and practically pull a person back from the edge of death it left her feeling like crap every time.

As Sam sat there they took the two boys away and the elder was called to come to Sams side. The elder was infuriated over what had happened and took Sam back to his tent to sleep the rest of the night. Sam didn't fight the idea though she didn't sleep very well. The old man snored horribly and she didn't really trust herself to not have nightmares. Instead she curled up around the pillows and meditated, delving into her dual core to, as she liked to say, clean house. Her dual core was made up of plant and pure energy like lightning. The duality twined around each other, complemented each other and she could access both at the same time if needed. While inside her cores she drew all her power into a single place, sealed up any straggling strands of power and reinforced the barriers that kept her two powers separate. While her dual cores powers were complementary to each other to let them join into one would probably kill her although they didn't know for sure. Initially the Yetis had believed that all halfas might have two cores one for the human half and one for the ghost. However as halfa children were born this was shown not to be the case. The tweaking of her internal barriers took a while because as she was tweaking Sam had realized the reason why she began to float as a human. Simply put it was because her ghost power was leaking out of her core and permeating her human form. It didn't do any damage to her human form but it wasted energy that she may need later and it made it that much harder to control her ghost powers. She set about fixing the leak which Sam figured had been caused by not maintaining this space while her memories were lost. That and the fact that her whole being had been permeated with ghost energy for so long Sam was slightly surprised she hadn't turned into a full ghost simply from exposure. She didn't know how long she lay there meditating but a hand shaking her is what brought her out of that state. By the slant of the light it was past morning and Sam had to blink several times to bring the girl who leaned over her back into focus.

"I'm sorry, but the elder counsel is holding a tribunal to serve justice to Paul and your presence is required."

Sam blinked again and sat up with a huge yawn. "Who's Paul and what's going on again?" she asked feeling rather confused.

"The elder of the brothers who stopped you in the road, the counsel has gathered to decide his fate but first they want to ask you some questions." The girl answered

Sam stood and swiftly put on her boots. She still had on her clothes from the day before as well as her cloak. Bunning her hair she followed the girl to a large empty space at the edge of the camp site.

As they got closer Sam could hear the older boy known as Paul screaming profanities and when he saw her he practically went mad with rage. She swallowed hard as the questions from the elders began. Less than three questions in they ordered a gag to be placed on Paul since he didn't seem to be able to shut up. They asked her to tell them of the previous nights events and brought the watchman she had located forward to give his story too. His brother was still unconscious and as the meeting went on several other youngsters came forward admitting to being hurt by Paul. In the end Sam saw an execution. The elders decided unanimously that with the overwhelming evidence before them, Paul was a danger to their clan and other people. Sam gained permission to leave before they took his life and she went back to the elders tent to prepare to leave.

The camp was somber after the late morning's events and Sam found that there was a bathing area a half mile away near a small lake. She got directions and after promising the elder she would return she made her way to the lake alone. She took a nice long bath swimming around in the warm water chasing some fish under water. Since she could hold her breath for quite a while due to being half ghost she was still under water when the first Goons traveled overhead.

Water dampens almost all energy and as Sam returned to the surface she was only able to tell something was amiss once she climbed out. Swiftly turning intangible to dry off Sam stood on the shore and listened as faintly screaming voices carried over the wind. Her ghost sense went off next and Sam threw on clean clothes as fast as she could. She just managed to pull her pants on when the first Goons came out of the sky to attack. Sam threw a shield around herself as she went ghost buying herself the extra seconds needed to tie her boots to her bag. A wave of Goons pressed against her shield pounding on it and Sam realized she couldn't hold off against this many Goons unless she did something drastic. Tossing the bag on her back Sam dove back into the lake dropping her shield as she entered the water. Swimming down swiftly through the water she hovered near the bottom her hair gently waving about her face as she looked up towards the surface. For a moment Sam hoped that she wouldn't have to use her idea then multiple splashes told her otherwise. Dozens of Goons had followed her into the water and Sam continued floating near the bottom waiting until they came within her range. Just as the closest Goons reached out to grab her Sam let loose with a powerful electrical attack blasting every Goon in the water. Her attack plus the water disrupted the structural integrity of the Goons and within moments the water was foggy with green ectoplasm that would eventually be reabsorbed into the environment. After checking the coast was clear Sam burst from the lake and after briefly changing back to human so she could put on her boots Sam charged off towards the camp.

The camp was in ruins with people fleeing every which way. A ring of Blood Blossom enchantments was erected near the center of the camp keeping Goons off the few people who had managed to get inside the ring.

"Leave them alone!" Sam yelled and charged headlong into battle. She attacked any Goon that was holding a human captive first while fighting any others that took a keen interest in her. Over ten minutes into the fighting Sam had the complete undivided attention of all the remaining Goons and the entire encampment had escaped to the safety of the blood blossom ring. After several more minutes of intense fighting Sam was slammed earthward by a combined attack and landed just outside the blood blossom ring. She was tired and the Goons seemed endless. She struggled to rise and sensing the Goons incoming she sent out a strand of power to the blood blossoms. Some Blood Blossom species liked her power and obeyed her wishes like most plants did. She couldn't touch the petals directly but she could handle the seeds and the creepers that the flowers grew on. She could feel that there were some seeds scattered in with the petals and thanking her luck they burst to life at Sams call swarming out to her to build a swift dome of vine like creepers flowers pointing out away from her. Goons smashed into it like bugs hitting a windshield while two managed to almost get to her but the vines grew straight through them causing them to moan and dissolve splattering Sam with ectoplasm as they did. Sam grimaced in disgust and shook the slime from herself the residue evaporating on its own.

"Ghost girl! What torment have you brought upon us?!" a man cried from the flower dome.

Sam looked over at the people huddled inside the dome spying the elder who she had healed. He recognized her as was staring at her in a kind of awed surprise.

"Hey! I didn't bring these Goons here!" Sam declared "In fact I could have easily gone about my business and allowed all of your people to be taken. Instead I decided to help."

Silence greeted her and Sam sighed growling under her breath "You're welcome."

Slowly Sam got to her feet the Goons outside the blood blossoms shifting and testing both domes power. Sam sent her power out to the circle of Blood Blossoms surrounding the people realizing it was too small for the amount of people within it. Vines grew quickly widening the circle in every direction but hers. From the way some of the people were eyeing her Sam knew better than to let them come into contact with her tiny dome.

"I'm going to try and lead the Goons away. Stay in the circle until the majority is gone. You should be able to destroy stragglers." Sam said mentally preparing herself for the battle ahead.

There was no reply from the people in the circle but Sam hadn't really expected one. She wished that she had a wide range attack like Dannys wail but unfortunately the vines were the best thing she had at the moment. After collecting some seeds from a particularly strong strand of flowers Sam sent the blood blossom vines out on the attack. Vines sprang from the ground and Sam had them bloom their flowers at the tips so that they tore through the Goons like rocks through wet paper. After a minute of thinning their numbers she managed to identify two main Goon bodies. They were clustered together high in the air outside of the range of the vines that swung about like mad sledgehammers. With a final glance back at the life clan hiding beneath their dome Sam called two flowerless vines to wrap about her arms and waist so she could have some extra protection if needed. Deciding she had done enough damage Sam allowed the rest of the vines surrounding her to disperse back to the main dome and before the rest of the Goons noticed the change she broke cover speeding at the primary Goons with ecto charged fists. Sam slammed one fist through one of the Goons chest and sent a piece of vine out and down her arm to wrap up the other Goon before sprouting Blood Blossoms. By the time she finished the two primary Goons off Sam had captured the rest of the Goons attention and they swarmed after her. Sam flew as fast as she could picking Goons off as she flew backwards. Although part of her was happy to see that once the Goons had a visual on her they immediately left the caravan and the life clan alone she was horrified to realize that these Goons were specifically targeting her and her alone.


	21. The Chase

**In which Sam has some trouble with Goons...**

 **Here is to staying safe in a mad world.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Sam was playing a dangerous game. She couldn't go at max speed because the Goons would lose her and Sam didn't want them returning to attack the Life Clan she had left behind. However she couldn't figure out how these Goons had found her much less track her. Had it been an accident, or were they able to seek out her unique ecto signature? In the end Sam figured she would just have to destroy them all so she wouldn't have to worry about it. However she was finding this harder to do than she had hoped.

"Dam Dark Parmius must have upgraded these Goons… Fan-freaken-tastic." Sam growled narrowly avoiding a beam of ecto energy from one of the Goons that was gaining. She took it out and a few others that were ahead of the pack but there were too many of them to face head on and Sam realized that her energy simply couldn't hold out for very much longer. She was going to have to make a stand somewhere sometime soon and as she looked up green light enveloped her making her yelp and loose control of her flight. She was falling disoriented and while passing a decent sized rocky island she finally recovered enough sense to stop her fall and simply float. Recovering her balance and looking around her Sam witnessed several goons seemingly magically appear in the air. She destroyed those easily and in the next instant seven more appeared but only halfway. They looked as if several at once were all trying to get through a door way and it was so comical that Sam had to laugh as realization struck. She had fallen or rather flew through a random portal and it had transferred her from a hilly grassland area to what appeared to be a jungle. This wasn't Undergrowths lands and it didn't appear that any single ghost had claimed this area. Floating islands littered the sky and were all different sizes. It reminded Sam of the asteroid field she and Danny had visited long ago, except these islands at least some of them were covered in plant life. A moaning brought her attention back to the struggling Goons that were seriously stuck halfway out of the portal less than 100 feet away. For a moment Sam almost started to blast them but in the end she figured it would be better to leave them bottlenecked the way they were. Now they couldn't chase her anymore and if they did catch back up she would know for a fact that they were tracking her. Shaking her head feeling worn out Sam took off as fast as she could fly hoping to get plenty of distance between her and them before they figured out how to free themselves.

She flew for several hours bringing her energy levels dangerously low because Sam had used up a ton of power fighting and she had been flying top speed since leaving the Goons. It was very close to dusk and Sam decided to find a place to sleep for the night. Out here in the wilds weird creatures came out at night and Sam had no desire to become part of the food chain. She settled down on a rocky island and when she found a shallow unoccupied cave she settled in before growing some blood blossom vines across the entrance to keep ghostly predators out. She was glad that she had run into the Living clan group because she now had a new plant in her arsenal that she could use. Blood Blossoms were a strange plant that had two classes, an attack class and a shield class. The attack class of Blood Blossoms radiated energy that hurt a ghost if it came too close while a shield class simply repelled. This particular species of blood blossoms was a rather potent shield class form and yet as long as she didn't touch the flowers they didn't bother her to be near them. The flowers even though they were a shield class could still hurt if she tried to push through them but she could handle the vines and seeds with no issues. With a sigh Sam curled up in her sleeping bag and fell asleep with plans to find a new road in the morning.

Light woke her in the morning and Sam got up feeling better. Her vines were untouched at the entrance and after checking her surroundings for Goons or anything else Sam switched into her ghost form before taking off. She flew for several hours and other than a predator ghost like bird attempting to attack her the morning was uneventful. Around lunchtime Sam stopped to eat on one of the numerous floating islands and changed into her human form to rest although she could keep going for far longer if needed. From the island Sam could see a great distance and she couldn't see any roads or manmade objects anywhere around her. A little ways off it looked as if the jungle bulged upwards a little higher than normal but that seemed like a small defining feature when it came to the carpet of green that spread out on all sides around her all the way to the horizon. When she was done eating Sam sat down cross-legged near the edge of the island and closed her eyes.

Undergrowth had taught her many tricks when it came to plants and one of them was a way to feel out living plants from inorganic objects. When he had first taught her range was very small but now that she was better at running her energy down natural plant pathways her range had expanded to nearly a hundred miles. It wasn't detailed in any way because that much information would overload her mind. It was literally just a way to find buildings or trash buried in the plant life around her. If she wanted details of an area such as animals, people, or ghosts she would have to shorten her range to within two miles. Entering her core Sam gathered a strand of her power and cast it out to the green carpet below. Then she listened. Green warmth flooded her mind as soon as she began overwhelming her for a moment before she pushed back hard slowly separating the flood into multiple streams and pools that represented the different plants that crisscrossed the land below her. Silently she chose a stream and followed the line outward into the jungle far beyond what her eyes could see. It was a type of creeper vine that she was following and it was very common in the jungle. She spread her senses out further but she could find no trace of a city anywhere. The only thing that was inorganic was part of the bulge in the jungle she had noticed earlier and she was pretty sure from the feel of it that it was ectoplasmic in nature. Slowly she made her way in a half circle ignoring the way she had come until her senses rang out a warning. The plants were very unsettled in the area she had come from. The unsettling feeling was coming from an area just outside her range and Sam tried reaching out to it trying to at least get some kind of answer as to why. A spike of pain slammed through her skull and Sam swallowed hard coming back to her mind with a snap. She clutched her head a slight throbbing echoing in her mind.

"Ow, ow, ow, ok too far to reach." Sam muttered holding her head and wiping a thin trickle of blood away from under her nose. Pulling a cloth napkin from her bag she blew her nose the small bleed already healed from her abnormally aggressive healing factor. She had tried to reach too far with that last one but if she could feel a plants unease from that far out there was probably something really nasty coming and she had no interest in finding out what it was. She stood and shook her head clearing her mind of the riot of color that hung there as an afterimage. Leaping off the edge of the floating island Sam let herself fall for a meter or so before going ghost and began flying towards the nearby bulge she had noted earlier. She had been flying for less than five minutes when she was ambushed.

The Goons came out from behind two floating islands and from the forest itself. Sam cursed her stupidity as she threw a shield around herself to block the first wave of ectoblasts. The Goons had gone past her in the night probably not noticing her because of the Blood Blossoms and seeded themselves through the area once they reached a certain distance away from the portal that led her here. They had probably been following her for a while now and had set up this ambush when she was least expectant of it. This new batch was smarter than the ones she was used to and now she was too high up and too far away from an island for her plant powers to be of much use. Sam shot forward laying on the speed to try and out run the Goons. Some fired away at her while others built themselves into a living wall trying to block her escape. Ducking her head Sam crashed thought them, one of the lucky goons managing to keep a hold of her even as she smashed through. It slowed her down just enough to be a problem and as she punched it with an ectoenergy covered fist making it dissolve its cohorts had already caught back up. Sam fired off an energy wave buying a few more precious seconds trying to make it to an island that floated nearby. A blast caught her in the back and side knocking her off track and towards the jungle below. There was a clearing down near the strange bulge and Sam turned her back towards it firing off another couple of shots at the Goons that followed. Seeming to realize what she was attempting to do some Goons came at her as a pack taking hold of her before she could fire off enough shots to wipe the majority out. Two grabbed her dominate arm before she could pull her dagger while another grabbed her leg before she could kick the first two off. A third Goon pulled her hair yanking her head back cruelly and Sam let out yell of frustration as more came in to try and take hold of her. Her one free arm flung out and collided with a Goon that grabbed it before she could strike again. Flexing her torso Sam desperately tried to wrench herself free but it was no use. A moment later a large blast of ectoenergy slammed into her chest stunning her for several moments and severely ticking her off. Energy spiked from her core and she channeled it lashing out at all the Goons surrounding her with an electrical attack. Their jaws opened with an eerie shriek and the energy kept spreading outwards beyond the few that pinned her causing the Goons to overload and dissolve. Sam gasped as she fell the Goons that had been pinning her midair had turned to wisps and the recoil of releasing so much energy, instantaneously reverted her back to her human form. No Goons chased her falling form and Sam figured she was about to fully die. She couldn't stop her fall and her consciousness was fading swiftly. She had the brief impression of leaves and a black gear before her body was jolted to a stop, her mind succumbing to the darkness.

Sam woke up to a throbbing head and a shivery gasp as her ghost sense went off. Groaning she sat up and noticed she was human and laying in a hammock like contraption in the corner of a rectangular room. Grey bricks made up the walls while a black floor of some stone lined the floor, both of them had the eerie glow of a ghost construct. Shelves lined one wall opposite of her broken clocks covering most of the available space and as Sam eyed the hammock material she had the strangest sense of déjà-vu. The hammock was the only human object in the room and was probably the only reason she had stopped falling before splatting on to the rock below since humans pass through ghost constructs. Slowly Sam climbed from the hammock and stood up. A slight dizziness troubled her for a few brief moments but then it passed leaving a throbbing headache. Her ghost sense went off again and Sam looked around the room noticing for the first time a dull banging sound coming from close by. There was no door to this room and Sam realized she would have to walk through the wall or jump through the ceiling to get out. Something most likely Goons were clearly trying to break in to the room and Sam decided to get out before they broke through the walls that were keeping her somewhat safe. Ignoring the broken clocks and that wall since that was where the banging was coming from she stepped towards the opposite wall before a glint of metal caught her eye.

A tube like shape sat on the opposite end of the room on a single thin shelf. For a long moment Sam almost ignored it and continued moving on but for some reason that glint of metal called to her. Feeling strange Sam walked over to where it innocently sat and lifted the metal tube off the shelf blowing years of dust off the canister. A fuzzy feeling swept through her and the headache she had, the aches from being blasted as well as using too much energy were all instantly gone. Sam felt energized and she looked down at the tube recognizing what it was. The metal tube was a Fenton thermos, a very old, very beat up Fenton thermos. It was strange though Sam thought as she rolled the thermos in her hands, the bulges and dings marring its surface seemed to come from the inside. Without realizing it Sam had crossed the room and stood before the hammock structure she had woken up in, still studying the thermos in her hands. The cap of the thermos was screwed on tight and a small light blinked lazily at her signifying the thermos was full. She turned the thermos further and took notice of a major feature jutting from the surface. It was a face grinning manically from the steel, a face she recognized and had once feared. Suddenly Sam knew where she was although she didn't know how it was possible and recognized this thermos in her hands.

"Back again Clockwork?" a silky voice growled from inside the thermos and Sam shrieked in surprise dropping it.

From that point on everything went to hell around her.

* * *

 **Hehehe I'm totally evil and I really love this cliffhanger. I told you guys that one chapter was important so if you are still reading buckle up because we are about to take off. Any guesses as to who our mystery ghost is? See you all in three days!**


	22. Dan

**The long awaited chapter has arrived! Well long for me at least. This is actually the first piece of this story that I wrote. Everything above was guess work adlib and me trying to figure out how in the world to get to this moment. 65 pages later and here we are. It just gets better from here. At least in my opinion.**

 **Here is to staying safe in a mad world.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

The wall to her left side exploded inwards and knocked her sideways so she fell half in half out of the wall. Sam briefly noted a tiny staircase set just behind the wall she was half in half out of when something grabbed her leg. Sam thrashed one booted foot connecting with the thermos sending it flying towards the other wall where it clanged sharply before hitting the ground. Fully back in the rectangular room thanks to the Goon pulling on her Sam lashed out again this time making the Goon loosen its grip. Getting nowhere fast Sam blasted it with a shot of electricity and glanced over in time to see two Goons aim their ecto charged hands at the slowly rolling thermos.

"NO! DON'T!" Sam screamed in warning but it was too late.

Their blast hit the thermos dead center ripping the slightest hole in it. The air seemed to suck in towards the thermos for a brief second before it exploded from the inside out with a roar of triumph. A slight haze filled the room as dust was blasted into the air and in the middle of it all stood a tall muscular figure with ghostly blue skin and burning bright white hair. Time seemed to hang still for a moment as Sam tried to process her shock. The Goons still filled the hole in the wall and she still lay half curled on her side propped up on a single elbow. The one before her though, he shouldn't still exist. After all Danny had died.

"Dan…" The words were torn from her in a whisper but they were still loud enough to register and he turned towards her.

Confusion crossed features so similar to Dannys that Sams heart stopped for a brief second. They were the same height same build although Dan was slightly more muscular and had a cape where as Danny hadn't ever wore one. Her symbol, the Phantom symbol was emblazoned on his chest, and that same chest swelled for a second before his ghostly voice echoed through the room once again.

"Sam?" he questioned and at the sound of his voice the strange stillness that had enveloped the room shattered.

As one the Goons totally ignored Sam and open fired at Dan knocking him sideways into the wall. Dan snarled his eyes instantly blazing a blood red as he leapt at the unsuspecting Goons his hands twisted into claws. Sam didn't wait around to watch what would happen she knew the Goons had absolutely no chance of surviving and instinctively she knew she wouldn't have a chance either if she didn't move fast. Scrambling forward Sam threw herself through the wall. The stair case was still there and she fell towards it as an unintelligible voice roared from the other side of the thick wall. Sprinting up the stairs Sam bolted through the door at the top not even stopping to check if the coast was clear. Goons waited for her on the other side of the door and they all paused at the sight of her. Panting Sam had but a moment before they recovered from their surprise and moved forward as one to attack. Whipping her dagger out of its sheath Sam kicked, punched, and slashed at them as they tried to close in.

"We need to get out of here Dan is free and he is going to kill us all if you don't move! Run dammit!" Sam yelled at them as they ignored her and managed to grab hold of her even though her attacks.

She was about to go ghost and blast the lot of them when an unearthly sound echoed through the clock tower making all the Goons freeze in their tracks. The ground beneath them started to crack up and noticing the Goons were distracted Sam broke free of their grip before diving behind a massive column like wall near the back of the room. The floor mere feet from where she had been standing shattered upwards, massive chunks of stone smashing several unsuspecting Goons to smithereens.

"Oh goodie more fun!" Dan exclaimed and suddenly all Sam could hear were the sounds of battle and Dans maniacal laughter.

She glanced out around the column once after a half a Goon flew past her nonexistent hiding spot dissolving as it crashed to the ground. There were two Dans smashing their way through the large crowd of Goons in the open center of the tower. One of the Dans was using a Goons limb as a melee weapon to cave in other Goons skulls as the other Dan tore the Goons apart with his bare hands. Neither one was even bothering to use their ghost powers, instead they were relishing in using brute force to demolish the Goons one by one and piece by piece. Sam felt her heart speed up again, Dans cruelty sparking visions of Dark Parmius rampaging through town after town when he had come out of hiding after the Merging Wars had started. Her breathing sped up and Sam recognized the signs of a panic attack starting. She had to get out, had to get away from this madness, from his madness. Goons appeared around the edge of the pillar pushed there by accident as the Goons in front of them were knocked back. They saw her shaking form and thinking they recognized a far easier target attacked. The next few moments passed in a blur for Sam her blade flashing wickedly in the pale light. The next thing Sam knew she was on her hands and knees drenched in sweat without a Goon in sight. Her ears buzzed in the silence and Sam swallowed hard forcing herself not to throw up. Blinking and taking in great gulps of air she tried to focus on the sounds around her but the room had gone utterly silent. Startled Sam's head jerked up looking around. She was still behind the pillar and from her vantage point she could only see chunks of stone and the odd piece of a Goon dissolving here and there.

Slowly, feeling unsure of herself, Sam stood her breathing still harsh from the fighting and panic attack. She could see ghostly bodies slowly fading as their mauled forms turned back to pure energy and dissipated into the air. Even after seeing the labs and knowing how they were created Sam still wasn't sure if the Goons were simple mindless ghostly constructs or if they were conscious beings. Considering how many of the dam things she's taken out so far Sam really hoped they were only mindless constructs. Her real concern at the moment wasn't the Goons though; she couldn't find Dan and had no idea where he had disappeared off to. Before she had lost herself to the panic fighting attack she had spied two of him near the center of the room laughing maniacally, throwing bodies, and absorbing attacks like they were gentle caresses, then seemingly in the next moment there had been silence. A silence so sudden, Sam had to wonder for a brief moment if time had stopped. Considering where she was the idea wasn't too farfetched however her instincts told her that danger still lay very close. Gripping the pillar beside her Sam slowly peeked around the edge holding her breath. Bodies and parts littered the floor where chunks of stone didn't. Ectoplasm was seemingly everywhere making her feel instantly nauseous but still she couldn't locate Dan either by sight or sound. The total lack of sound disturbed her and feeling like a hunted animal Sam eased around the pillar into the totally silent room the hairs on the back of her neck rising. There was no one there and Sam decided that it was far past time to escape. She slid back behind the pillar again keeping an eye on the room before her. There was a staircase directly behind her and slowly she backed up towards it. Noise was starting to filter down the hallways leading to this open room and Sam figured that it was probably reinforcement Goons. Two steps away from the pillar Sam froze seeing and not seeing something move out of the corner of her eye. The not quite shape moved stealthily behind her making her wonder briefly if she really had seen anything at all but then her ghost sense went off.

"Ah hell" Sam whispered to herself a feeling a chill of dread run straight through her. Spinning round to where she saw the nothingness Sam recoiled her back to the pillar once again as Dan turned visible revealing that he was practically standing right beside her.

"Hello Sammy dear" Dan said as he lunged forward to grab her by the neck before slamming her hard against the pillar.

"I am not your Sammy and let me go!" Sam snarled letting her anger overwhelm any lingering traces of fear she had of him. She wasn't the weak 14 year old girl he had attacked all those years ago. She was an adult now and a half ghost, a powerful half ghost that had faced worse enemies than him. Besides she knew it would do no good to show fear around him and she dug her nails into the arm that held her by the neck getting a good grip on his gloved arm as she struggled madly testing his strength.

Dan chuckled at her seemingly futile attempt while saying "Sammy dear you look as if you've done very well these past few years. Tell me where is my mini me version?"

"None of your dam business!" Sam retaliated and before she could change her mind she drew on her depleting energy reserves and slammed a concentrated blast of ghostly electricity directly into Dan.

Dan roared in sudden shock and fury, he certainly hadn't been expecting that, and accidently released his grip on Sam. Falling back a little to clear his head and gripping his shocked arm Dan took a menacing step towards where Sam sat slightly dazed on the floor rubbing her neck. He only made it one step before he was once again blasted sideways by some more Goons. The sudden cacophony of sound broke through Sams dazed shock and she quickly realized the next wave of Goons had arrived. Knowing she didn't have long before her chance to escape was forfeit Sam decided to take the fastest way out. Transforming into her ghost form Sam shot into the air before watching Dan fight a moment longer a sense of nostalgia falling over her. The feeling vanished as his shocked gaze met hers and Sam spun around before she flew towards the wall at top speed.

"SAM!" Dan roared behind her and moments before slamming into the wall she transformed back into her human form phasing through the wall, out into the open air. She fell the few feet and hit the ground running accessing her ghost powers again to turn invisible to avoid being seen by any lingering Goons outside. Sam knew she had only moments to get away and figuring if she could just get under the trees she hoped that maybe just maybe…. before she made it 15 feet, the side wall she had just phased through exploded outward. Goons and rocks flew past her and she managed to cover her head moments before what felt like a boulder slammed into her knocking her to the ground. Feeling dazed yet again Sam realized what actually hit her was a Goon but it was already dissolving into nothing as she shifted below it rolling what was left of it off her.

Slowly Sam rolled over away from it feeling a trickle of blood seep down her arm where a sharp chunk of rock in the ground had sliced her when she fell. Ignoring the wound Sam got to her feet once more knowing that showing any weakness would spell her doom. Dan stood not 20 feet away in the gaping hole that had been the wall, holding a struggling primary Goon easily by the neck in each hand. He grinned savagely knowing he had her full attention and bore down on the Goon's throats crushing them easily in his grip. The Goons bodies vanished leaving nothing between them as Dan rubbed his hands together wiping the ectoplasm from them, his red eyes never leaving hers.

"I guess it's going to be a fight then." Sam whispered to herself and for what seemed like the umpteenth time that day let the rich green circles of light envelop her body revealing her ghost form.

Dans smile widened further showing off his fangs and brought his hands together in a slow clapping motion.

"My dear Sammy, you simply must tell me how you managed to do this it's absolutely stunning." Dan said his deep ghostly voice carrying easily across the space they stood in.

"I'm not telling you anything." Sam snapped "Except that you need to stop trying to kill me. I have far bigger things to worry about and if you're not going to be useful then you need to get the hell away from me and stay away!"

Dan stared at her for a long moment then burst out laughing though his eyes held no mirth what so ever. "My Dear Sammy if I wanted you dead you would already be dead. I get released from my little prison and the first person I see is you! Well you and some strange looking ghosts which are such fun to tear apart."

Before Sam could blink he fired off an ectoblast which blasted a hole through another Goon that had been creeping up on him. The Goon vanished slowly as it fell to the ground and Sam was slightly surprised that Dan hadn't fired off a blast at her too.

"In any case I am very curious. I like the new look you have by the way. Green is a very fetching color on you." Dan finished continuing on as if nothing had happened.

Sam felt her jaw drop in disbelief. The crazy jerk wanted to talk?! The last time she had seen Dan, he had been trying to kill everyone to try and make Danny turn into him. Before Sam could think up a reply however a distinct noise captured her attention. Spinning around to face the trees Sam held her breath listening hard, Dan all but forgotten behind her. She recognized that sound, a deep humming that always seemed just the slightest bit off pitch from when she fought in the war at Dannys side. It was a sound that chilled her to the bone, a sound that she had hoped she would never hear again.

A hand clamped down on her shoulder hard enough to leave a bruise and Sam twisted around looking right into Dans flaming red eyes.

"I don't like to be ignored." Dan snarled the look on his face bordering back on the manic side.

"You need to get out of here." Sam answered surprising even herself as she said it, then she realized why she had instinctively said that. If Dan was taken down or captured or even worse went to Dark Parmius side the world as she knew it, at least what's left of it will most defiantly be destroyed. At best Dark Parmius would have no opposition strong enough to resist him and he would rule as the unchallenged king.

"What?" Dan asked staring at her a look of confusion, surprise or perhaps something in between on his face. Sam really wasn't sure but she didn't really have the time to contemplate it. Wishing she had another thermos and knowing that she only had one chance to make him understand Sam ignored her own confusion as to why he was not trying to kill her, and forced herself to focus. Swiping his hand from her shoulder Sam swiftly pushed her other hand into his chest pushing him back towards what was left of Clockworks tower.

"You need to go Dan. This isn't the world you remember from your time, and its not the world from Dannys time either. It's different and for the most part not for the better. You need…" Sam started and then wind slammed through the clearing knocking her back into Dans chest as they both fell to the ground. Dan growled pushing Sam off him, before swiftly climbing back to his feet though the wind pushed him back several feet and nearly made him bend in half to stay upright. Sam cursed as she lay on the ground, the off tune humming making her grit her teeth because she had already realized they were out of time.

* * *

 **Dun dun dun... its Dan! They dont seem to get along very well... here is something a little extra for you readers!**

 **Darkness hides,**

 **Darkness sleeps,**

 **Darkness binds,**

 **Darkness keeps,**

 **Darkness laughs ever silent,**

 **Within the hearts of those who fight it.**


	23. Working Together?

**So we might get a little off canon for their personalities…. To be honest my story hasn't exactly been canon so far either. (Am I even using that word right?) Oh well (Throws papers into the wind….crap that's littering!) Battle scenes and awkward moments ahead!**

 **Here is to staying safe in a mad world.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Wind continued to pound the area bending the trees as Sam struggled back to her feet. Finally the beast creating the wind appeared barely clearing the tree line before slamming to the ground, taking out a few smaller saplings near the edge as it came down. It was one of the Dark Parmius's creations and from her experience with them they were very hard to kill. It was a giant ghost beetle like creature but built on a massive scale. It was at least 30 feet long with an oblong body and four legs that it stood on. Two extra scythe like legs extend off the front of its bulbous body, with rows of very sharp teeth within its jaws, while a set of bug like wings hid under a hard armor plated back. Dark Parmius had managed to prefect a type of mind control over animal ghost by the time the war had reached its peak and he had released these beetle ghosts upon Team Phantoms side as soon as he had been able. The beasts could lock on to a person's scent and had the nasty habit of killing and slamming through whatever got into their path as they tracked the unlucky being. The beetles had done some significant damage to Team Phantom's side before they managed to turn their aggressive tracking against Dark Parmius's side. They had let the beetles lock onto some ones scent and then had them get behind large groups of Goons, then once they were in place the people holding the beetles back would take off and the beetles would slam through its own allies trying to get to their intended prey. Finally after dealing with them the hard way by simply pummeling them into mush they found a vulnerable spot on them and they had a much easier time taking them out. It was Danny's father who had discovered the vulnerable spot and he had paid for the information with his life.

"Oh crap" Sam managed then looked behind her past where Dan now stood fearing the worst.

The Goons had regenerated filling in the hole left in the wall with their ghostly bodies spreading out along the wall and rapidly surrounding them as more Goons floated out of the forest with the beetle ghost blocking the trees before them.

Turning back towards the beetle Sam tried to make up a plan of attack that didn't end with her being killed but was swiftly interrupted by Dan. Grabbing Sam by the arm the slightest bit too hard he stepped between her and the beetle before yanking her fully behind him.

Sam squeaked in surprised annoyance about to protest his rough treatment, but before she could Dan spoke swiftly.

"Stay behind me and destroy the small fry that get too close." Dan snapped and before Sam could comprehend his comment he leaped off the ground leaving her by herself in one piece.

Sam stared at his retreating back wondering what in the heck had just happened. Was he actually trying to protect her or was he simply using her as a distraction? Before she could think too much about it, her attention was taken up by the Goons that seemed to choose that moment to attack from all sides. Vines sprang from the ground at her call wrapping Goons up before crushing them out of existence. Others knocked the Goons away from her as she battled with those that came at her from the front and sides.

She had been fighting for several minutes heck it could have been an hour because the Goons never seem to end. When she heard Dan yell as if he were in pain she glanced up concerned in spite of herself. He was blasting away at the beetle like ghost before him, sending up chunks of goo and shell with each connecting hit. Large portions of the beast already glowed with ectoplasmic blood and it wobbled unsteadily on its legs as it tried for a counter attack.

'He moves fast.' Sam thought then quickly realized why he cried out. Sam had managed to keep most of the Goons occupied on the ground battling her but some of the Goons managed to get around Sam and he had gotten hit by one of their weak ectoblasts.

'Not in pain then just surprised.' Sam figured and for a moment she just watches him destroy the Goons that had foolishly attacked him. She can feel her heart twist because as much as she hates the idea he really does move how Danny did. Even his voice is very similar though Dans seems to be a little darker or maybe just more ghostly since he no longer has a human half. Another Goon flew at him and Sam blasted it realizing if she is going to really watch his back she needs to get up in the air with him. That last thought is so natural and yet foreign Sam stumbles and almost catches an ectoray in the side. With a growl Sam slammed a chunk of her remaining power out building a swift wall between herself and the Goons coming at her. For moment she is able to stand still and looking up found Dan singlehandedly battling the beetle creature again. One of its scythe like claws had opened a nasty gash across his chest and the beast slashed at him again clearly trying to run him through. A moment before the blow connected Dan caught the scythe leg and wrapping his arms around it he heaved the whole thing sideways twisting in such a way that it ripped the leg right off the things body. The creature shrieked and crashed to the ground for a moment before it tried and nearly failed to get back on its remaining legs. It stumbled back several feet bleeding heavily from the missing limb as it crashed into the trees behind it splintering them like toothpicks. Dan tossed the limb away not paying attention as to where he threw it and Sam had to leap into the air to avoid getting crushed by the falling limb. The Goons had gone mysteriously still and taking advantage of the moment Sam flew towards Dan who stumbled slightly in the air. The stumble was brief before he caught himself but Sam called the vines to come with her so she could catch Dan in case he really did pass out or something. Dan didnt seem to notice her approach but as the vines got too close Dan swatted at them, before he turned around to glare at her.

"Stay out of my way!" he snarled his eyes blazing bright red with blood lust as he glanced over his shoulder at her.

Sam steeled herself knowing that what she was doing was close to insanity. However a moment later what he said didn't matter at all to her. "Your hurt." she said as he fully turned to face her. A large gash covered his chest slicing across the symbol there and that wasn't the only wound he had accumulated in the past few minutes either.

Dans eyes seem to dull slightly at her lack of reaction and he waved a hand at her clearly not caring about his injuries. "They will heal, now shoo." He growled

Sam was about to give a sharp retort but the beetle down below them let out an eerily pitched moan interrupting her and they both looked down curiously. The beetle had managed to get up onto three of its legs while leaning heavily into the busted trees. The fourth leg was dangling precariously clearly unusable and tree limbs fell across its back as it tried to move more. It shrieked suddenly calling to the Goons and the Goons started to fly towards it completely ignoring the two of them. Slowly at first they began gathering at the front of the beetle and as their numbers grew the beetle began attacking and devouring them.

"That's new." Sam muttered feeling grossed out. Realizing that the beetles and Goons attention were now taken she tugged on Dan's cape to grab his attention. "We should leave while they are distracted. Are you coming?"

"We should finish it off while its weak, not run like cowards!" Dan snapped in reply yanking his cape out of her reach.

Sam simply shrugged feeling more comfortable with his bad attitude as time wore on "It's not in such a weakened state that it still can't easily kill you. You do what you want I'm getting out of here."

Not waiting for a return comment and instinctively realizing he was going follow her no matter what Sam turned away from him before flying off as fast as she could. As she got over the tops of the trees heading in the opposite direction of the beetle a hand closed around her foot instantly slowing her down. Annoyed Sam glared down at Dan who flew up beside her a little too close for comfort. Before she could say or do anything he wrapped an arm around her waist pulling her against him before zooming off at such a high speed Sam couldn't help but let out a surprised yelp.

They flew for several minutes at a pace that left Sam unable to breathe much less yell. She felt them break the sound barrier something she had only managed to do twice on her own and the ground moved past them sickeningly fast. Dan also had her pressed to his side arms wrapped around her preventing her from struggling not that she would with them going at this insane speed. Finally his pace began to slow to a point that gave Sam the ability to once again draw in a deep breath of air.

"What in all the realms are you doing?!" Sam screamed slamming an elbow into his chest and breaking free of his grip. They floated near a rocky rift in the jungle and Sam wondered how far they had traveled in those few minutes.

"It's following us cant you hear them?" Dan demanded as he looked back the way they had come.

"Of course it's following us it has your or my scent! Why did you grab me? I hate being grabbed you should at least remember that!" Sam snapped

Hissing Dan flew at her a hand out like he was going to try and grab her by the throat again. This time however Sam was ready. Before he could come close to touching her she raised her hands showing the ghostly blue cracking energy that made up her electrical ability.

"Try it and I swear I will fry you." Sam hissed in no mood to play nice. She didn't even care that this show of force was using energy that she honestly didn't have.

Dan however didn't know that and he paused at the sight before growling deep in his throat. His eyes practically snapped shut and if he had been human Sam would have expected his face to turn red as he clearly made an effort to calm down slightly. "My scent?" Dan asked his voice a little rough as he retreated a step back in the air.

A little thrown by the question but glad he didn't continue his attack Sam lowered her hands expecting Dan to make another move. He didn't make a move towards her however, instead he waved a hand motioning for her to answer his question or maybe he was trying to egg her on. Sam wasn't sure because at this point she was totally confused by his presence. One second he acted as if he was going to kill her and in the next second he was attempting a conversation.

Taking a deep breath Sam gathered her thoughts. "These beetle ghosts lock onto a person's scent and they don't stop hunting until they kill their intended prey or are killed themselves. Dark Parmius created them in the war and apparently he still sends them out, to be honest I haven't seen them in years. I'm pretty sure it was sent out to capture or kill me but you got in the way and it's got your scent instead. In any case we need to hide. These rocks look like they are real world so we can phase through them and hopefully it will lose whosever scent it's tracking."

At this point Sam could just see the beetle as a tiny pinprick off in the distance and ever so faintly hear the off tune hum that accompanied the beetles approach.

"So I just have to kill it." Dan said a nasty smile crossing his face. "You go hide if you don't think you will survive the battle because I have far more questions for you." With that being said Dan turned away from her flying a little ways back the way they had come.

Sam felt her jaw drop as she tried to comprehend the magnitude of his stupidity or maybe just arrogance. After a moment she decided it's a combination of both and she flew after him wondering why she suddenly cared. "Did you not hear a single thing I just said?! You cant…"

Dan didn't let her finish. As she got close enough he turned towards her his hand glowing and shot a strong ectoblast at her. She saw the attack coming long before it nailed her and she threw a shield around herself before the ectoblast hit. It didn't do any damage to her or the shield the ectoblast simply forced her out of the air and down into the rocks which she phased through at the last second to avoid an impact that would hurt badly. She fell through the rocks swiftly and in the next moment she found herself falling through pitch black open air. Managing to slow her decent to a stop, Sam lit up a hand with ectolightning to check her surroundings and herself. The ectoblast had been a solid type blow which meant if it had hit the blast would have only bruised but it would not have burned. For a moment Sam wondered if Dan had known this cavern was here then decided he had blasted her to probably try and knock her unconscious.

"FREAKEN JERK!" Sam yelled at the rocks even as she could hear the battle beginning to rage on the surface.

* * *

 **Reviews would really be appreicated!**


	24. Synergy Bands

**Well crudola… stupid internet crashed and since practically live in the middle of nowhere I couldn't update… right now I'm having to bounce a signal from my phone to my computer and wander around as I play hot vs cold with the signal… ugh In any case here is more Sam Dan interaction! Hehe they make me giggle.**

 **Here is to staying safe in a mad world.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Figuring he can hold his own for at least a few minutes Sam healed some of her worst injuries and tried to think up a good plan of attack. From the look of that beetle ghost Sam knew that one of its weak spots is under its mandibles where its head connects to the body. Normally they would have to worry about its scythe claws but since Dan tore one of them off the remaining claw shouldn't be as much of a problem.

Taking a deep breath and checking her energy to make sure she didn't suddenly lose intangibility while crossing through tons or rock Sam turned invisible and intangible before snuffing out the light she has created. She flew back towards the surface and as she poked her invisible head up through the ground her senses are instantly assaulted by madness. Goons were hounding Dan from all sides and he was throwing wide range attacks seemingly everywhere at once just to keep them off him. Sam knew he won't be able to deal with such massive energy loss for very long and what's worse is the fact that he was fighting the beetle as well. Or he would be if it were attacking him. For the most part the beetle seemed to be observing the battle which was very strange. Even more strange is the fact that the beetle has changed in the few minutes that she hadn't seen it. The thing has grown more round and sprouted two more legs plus an extra two scythe like legs near its front.

Sam had come up out of the ground just under the things belly and she has a nearly clear shot at its weak point. Before she can make her move though Goons managed to immobilize Dans arms and legs which seemed to be some kind of signal for the beetle to attack. The thing shot a rope like substance at Dan and it hit his wrist making him snarl in pain. A different Goon flew up near where Dan was being held immobile in the air and holds its arm up clearly waiting for something. A shiver ran through Sam as she realized what was about to happen and knew of only one way to stop keep it from killing him. Disregarding all her instincts Sam launched herself from the ground staying invisible and at the last possible second she slammed into the Goons place as the beetle shot another rope like thing from its mouth. It hit Sams wrist hard and in the next moment it seemed to light up her whole body with a jolting pain that caused her to scream. She could hear Dan yelling into pain next to her and she could hear herself screaming in agony but another part of her recognized the energy flowing into her. The flow was too strong and that's why it hurt so bad, but in more ways than one the energy reminds her of Danny. A strange sensation deep within her chest filled her and although pain filled her every pore she felt like she could breathe for the first time in a long time. As the strange sensation faded Sam had a jolt of insight realizing its Dans ghostly energy flowing into her. With the energy identified Sam quickly recognized the thing now attached to her wrist. It is yet another device created by the evil Dark Parmius, they are Synergy Band, at least that is what Tucker called the blasted things.

After what seemed like forever the flow ebbed into a manageable quantity and Sam realized that she could control the energy flow allowing her to ease the raging agony that accompanied such an energy overload. She could feel another's agony as well as if a connection tied her to another and Sam knew almost instinctively that something deep within her had changed. As the pain lessened Sam was finally able to open her eyes. She found that they were both dangling from their wrists and the Goons had released Dan although they hovered nearby in case they were needed again. The beetle seemed to realize they both survived the bands initial connection and it started to raise its scythe claws to strike the finishing blow. Sam and Dan hung decently close to the ground giving them a surprisingly good shot of the beetle's vulnerable spot.

' _We need to attack before it decides to finish us off.'_ Sam thought her mind instinctively reaching out down an invisible pathway even as her eyes closed in exhaustion.

 _'How?_ ' a voice asked one that Sam almost recognized

Sam pictured the spot just under the beetles head where it attached to the body.

' _A good solid blast can kill it'_ Sam thought again

' _How?'_ the voice asked again and Sam could only think of one attack that can create enough damage in one hit.

Sams eyes snapped open as she realized whose voice she was hearing in her mind and not questioning how in the heck it happened she screamed both out loud as well as in her mind. "Dan use your wail!"

In the next moment Dans eyes snaped open blazing a rich red. Drawing in a deep breath he unleashed his best attack practically point blank into the beetles weakest spot. The beetle released a screech that could just barely be heard over the sheer noise and power of Dan's wail. The wail cut off as the beetle slung them both sideways away from it throwing them towards the ravine that Dan had knocked her into at the very beginning, before the battle had started. Sam reached out just in time to grab him and turn them both intangible before they hit the rocks. Managing to just hold it long enough to make it through the rocks Sam lost consciousness not even feeling herself hit the ground.

Sam awakened slowly feeling weak and drained to an extent that she hadn't felt since the start of the Merging war. Calling on her ghost powers to grow a tiny glow plant Sam realized that at some point she had returned to her human form. Standing Sam felt a little dizzy but for the most part was ok. Her healing power had taken over while she lay unconscious healing the worst of her injuries before she woke back up. Checking herself over one last time Sam heard something large breathing nearby and for a moment she could feel her heart freeze as she remembered Dan and how badly he had been injured fighting.

Unable to ignore him Sam ran to his side quickly realizing he was thankfully still unconscious but badly injured. Biting her lip Sam tried to think of the best way to deal with him. She can't let him die especially not now that the bands bind them together. However, thinking he will wake up in any kind of pleasant mood is so farfetched it makes her laugh out loud. With a sigh Sam changed into her ghost half the rich green lines lighting up the small cave system they landed in as they travel across her body. Reaching into the pouch undergrowth gave her Sam removed a few seeds from it, accessing her ghost powers as she dropped them to the ground. One of the seeds is a type of vine that she has bread specially. Its very strong and ghost, fire, freeze, practically everything resistant. In his weakened state Sam figures it should be able to easily hold Dan. The second is a type of blood blossom flower that suppresses ghost powers in general but doesn't mess with her own because she bread it that way. The third is her lunch since she is absolutely starving. She eats a Fenton ectobar as the plant produces several round apple like fruits and Sam downs them swiftly as she grows the other two plants under Dan making sure the vines binding him are loose enough to be comfortable but tight enough to hold him. Feeling slightly better with food in her belly Sam begins to heal him starting with the worst injuries first. The sheer volume of injuries he has makes Sams stomach feel sour and makes her wonder how he had been able to fight for so long. If he had been human he would already be dead no question about it. His body however has already started to mend itself. Sam helps his own healing abilities along as she sets some of his rib bones so they heal properly. She doesn't know how long she has been at it but as she is healing the particularly nasty deep gash slicing across his chest Sam realizes he is awake and watching her. Barley suppressing a scream of surprise Sam jerks away letting out a small grunt as she does so. For a moment Sam stayed perfectly still expecting him to snarl, snap his bindings, or say something but he just laid there watching her. The gash on his chest continued to bleed sluggishly and Sam felt slightly surprised he still had any blood left in him. Steeling herself Sam reached for her healing ability again and finished healing the gash. She did another sweep of his body checking for anything she may have missed but his remaining wounds were not life threatening. Knowing his body could handle the rest of the healing on its own Sam sighed slumping sideways a little resting. Rich green circles enveloped her body leaving her human and feeling the effects of overreaching herself twice in one day. Not even realizing she had called to them extra vines encircled her gently, lowering her to the ground as she passed out from exhaustion.

She floated in darkness a tendril of power flowing away from her off into the distance. Sam reached for the tendril curiously the feeling coming from it so familiar and warm she was surprised when Dans voice seems to float from it his voice filtering in through the darkness.

' _Why did you heal me?'_

' _Because I couldn't let you die.'_ Sam answered

There was something deep within him something that Sam sensed that she couldn't ignore. It was like a spark in the darkness, one that she knew could become so much more.

What felt like a sigh whispered through the darkness then, interrupting her train of thought. ' _You have been asleep for a while now and I'm bored. So wake up because I am hungry and I don't know if destroying these vines will hurt you.'_

He sounded concerned and that last bit of information shocked Sam back to consciousness causing her to jerk upright ignoring the exhaustion and dizziness that accompanied the sudden movement. Vines kept her from falling back and with their help she managed to stand placing a hand on Dans arm.

"Before I let you go no attacking me or calling me Sammy and no running off. We need to talk and I'd rather not chat while being attacked by Goons or any other creepy creations of Dark Parmius." Sam said feeling a little lightheaded. Part of her screams that this is a really, really bad idea but she is too exhausted and some other part of her realizes that if he truly wanted to get out he could and then he would be that much angrier at her for not releasing him. Plus he seemed strangely calm which made her hope that he was also still too exhausted to do much of anything.

"I'm not going to attack you or hurt you." Dan grumbled and Sam realized that's all she is going to get from him at the moment. Pulling the energy from the vines back into herself the plants swiftly unraveled their hold on Dan who floated to keep himself from falling to the ground. Slowly he righted himself as the plants returned to their seed forms. Sam dropped into a crouch to try and pick the seeds up but dizziness swept back through her making her slump sideways again. Before she could completely fall to the floor Dan grabbed her with a growl. Ignoring the seeds and her exhausted grumble Dan lifted her easily off the ground watching her eyes slide shut against their will.

"Same as ever." Dan muttered laying her on the vines that were still in place less than two feet away. Sam had already slipped back into unconsciousness. He watched her for a bit and found the fruit like apples. He ate the rest of them still feeling weakened from the battle. It had been so very long since he'd had a good fight and although he was exhausted he was too hyped up to really rest.

So Dan waited and he had never been good at waiting or being patient. Since he became a full ghost at 15 he had always took what he wanted when he wanted it and done as he wished with no one to hold him back. Now though, with Sam sleeping soundly near him he found himself caught between the nervous exhaustion from always being hyper vigilant and wanting to relax for the first time in years. He wondered if it was because he was so low on energy or if it was Sams presence that was affecting him so profoundly. Either way he didn't really care but it was nice to be able to think and not have what felt like fire burning through his brain. He was still hungry though and Sams words echoed through his mind leaving him unable to rest. He had questions many questions in fact but two specific questions seemed most important at the moment. Number one being who in the hell was Dark Parmius and number two where was his annoying younger version of himself.


	25. Talking Together?

**Still no internet so a day late yet again… Sam gets testy towards Dan. Hehe**

 **Here is to staying safe in a mad world.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Sam slept for a long time and when she finally did wake up she was sore all over. Groaning Sam sat up looking around in the dim light. One of her glow flower pods was still alive and she was only able to see because of it. Even superior senses have their limits and pure darkness was apparently hers. Slowly Sam stood up and rather shakily made her way over to the flower her bare feet pressing against the smooth cool rock. As she reached out to the plant Sam froze. She was bare foot and she didn't remember taking off her shoes which meant someone else had. Turning around she suddenly came within a foot of a face leering out of the dimness the body behind it giving off its own ghostly light.

"Boo." He hissed and Sam reacted faster than she could think.

Her fist flashed out as her heart rate spiked and smashed full force into Dans face sending him careening into the cave floor.

"What the hell Dan?!" Sam exclaimed recognizing him as he whipped around snarling.

He leapt at her his fist glowing and Sam ducked allowing him to blast past her. Swinging around his eyes blazing bright Dan charged her again his hands twisted into claws as they burned bright with green energy.

"Chill out Dan!" Sam yelled as she ducked out of range of his claws swiftly transforming into her ghost form so she would have full access to her powers. One hand slashed past her arm cutting a shallow gash as she didn't move fast enough and Sam reacted by sending a burst of ecto electricity into the air between then knocking him back several feet. He panted coming to a hovering stop over the seeds that had been left on the floor of the cave and since he showed no sign of calming down Sam called to the seeds which burst into a riot of growth trapping him in a few short seconds. Sam dropped to her knees on the hard ground breathing hard listening to Dan snarl and curse. She had recovered some of her strength due to the crystal Undergrowth had given her but she wasn't nearly as recovered as she would need to be if she had to fight a full on battle with Dan. Plus ecto energy only supported her ghost half and she'd had several major battles over the past day that left both sides of her physique running on fumes.

Dan continued to snarl and fight against the vines that bound him nearly breaking loose at least twice. Being pissed off gave him a bit of an energy boost but he didn't seem to be recovering as fast as he was used to. This angered him further especially since Sam seemed just fine but eventually his energy gave out. The vines won fully cocooning him and holding him up off the floor as Sam got to her feet and sashayed over the where he was. Ok so she didn't really sashay more like stomped but she was still stunning in her ghost form even though she was quite clearly annoyed with him. The scratch he had managed to land had already healed and as he marveled at her healing ability she stepped into the air so they were on the same level and glared at him.

"What in the worlds is your problem?" Sam snapped pointing a finger in his face.

"ME? You're the one with the right hook!" he growled and just to screw with her jerked forward snapping his teeth together just short of her finger.

Instead of flinching Sams other hand swung forward smacking him upside the head. The hand he snapped at wrapped around one of the vines crossing his chest and she practically went nose to nose with him.

"Do that again and I will drain your energy until your core shatters, then I will leave your remaining husk for the scavengers to find. Do you understand me?" Sam asked her voice cold and deadly, her eyes burning a hole in what was left of his soul.

Dan felt a shiver of excitement run through him. He wasn't scared of her in the least although he realized that she wasn't messing around with her threat. She was completely serious and he had no doubt that she would follow through if he pissed her off any further. In fact he could already feel the slow drain of energy from the plants that wrapped around him. Even still he grinned. He liked this new improved Sam he had woken up to. She was quite the badass. His grin seemed to diffuse the pissed off mindset that Sam had because the energy drain feeling halted and she pushed away from him to hover a foot or so away.

"I cant tell if you are insane, stupid, or something else entirely. Were you like this the first time I met you?" Sam asked and Dan shrugged or at least he tried to.

"None of the above Sammy dear. Before I was simply trying to seal my future but since I'm still here its clearly happened." Another wicked grin spread across his face. "Tell me how many have I killed so far? Were you one of my victims?"

Sam almost punched him again. She wanted to so bad she could practically taste it but she knew it wouldn't fix anything or even make her feel better. So she struck back with the truth knowing that it would be far more devastating than any lie she could think up.

"Danny is dead." Sam yelled her voice echoing in the cave and silence fell as the echoes faded.

Dans grin fell and Sam turned away the outburst taking all the fight out of her. "Dannys dead Dan, and I don't know why you still exist." Sam whispered and dropped to the ground letting the dark green rings encircle her changing her back to human once more.

"You lie!" Dan roared and tried to thrash in his bonds. He could barely wiggle and he let loose another loud roar of frustration as he watched her walk back over to the vines that she had been sleeping on. She ignored his antics, found her bag as well as her shoes before putting them and socks on her feet. When he finally quieted down Sam stood and walked back over to him the vines following like a group of puppies. They formed a chair like structure that Sam leaned back into and one of them started to produce orb shaped fruits that she picked off and ate one by one. They eyed each other in silence for several minutes before Dan could bear it no longer. His anger was spent, he was wrapped so tight in vines his arms were going to sleep (something he hadn't even though possible) and now the one person who should have been a constant was apparently not even alive. Dan let himself go limp since the vines would hold him either way.

"How?" he asked and Sam looked away.

"It was Dark Parmius doing although he didn't strike a final blow. He and Danny were fighting and Danny won but he died because of his injuries. He died because I was too weak to help him." A tear slipped down Sams cheek and she wiped it away annoyed with herself. Danny's death was a wound that had yet to heal even though it had been many years.

"Who is Dark Parmius?" Dan asked unable to give Sam any sort of comfort. His words would be meaningless to her so he didn't even try.

Sam looked Dan dead in the eyes and said. "He is a mistake of Vlads. He is a full ghost made from combining Plasmius with Pariah Dark."

Dan gaped at her the idea of Vlad combining with another ghost hitting so close to home he visibly flinched. A memory swam close to the surface of his mind.

 _He was strapped to a metal stretcher a mask fitted tight over his face. A slight feeling of panic and distrust flitted through his mind but the drugs were already starting to take effect. He was just so very tired and besides he wanted this didn't he? A voice spoke up one that Dan vaguely recognized_

 _"Is this all you ever hoped for Plasmius?"_

 _"No Fright Night. I wish my dear Madeline was here as well but Dan shall have to be enough as my son. Once I absorb his ghost half he will be far easier to control." Vlad answered and anger surged through Dan the first real thing he had felt since everyone had died in the accident._

 _"Heart rate climbing." A mechanical voice reported and Vlad did something because Dan felt drowsiness surge into him but before he fully lost consciousness he swore that Vlad would never have his ghost half…_

The memory broke off as a surge of bitter old anger swept it back into the dark recesses of his mind taking any sort of useful information with it. He knew what that old memory was to but as he tried to figure out what in the world the details were memory was and why it was so important it felt as if an angry black hole had filled his mind. Even the idea of what the memory could mean was already gone slipping into the darkness that concealed so many old memories of who he once was. The anger stayed though it always did and Dan could feel his aura brighten as he managed to spit.

"So its Vlads fault yet again huh? It figures, has anyone found the cheese head or will I get the pleasure of hunting him down?"

Sam sat up at his words eyeing Dan in an odd way. "Danny said the same thing when Vlad told us how Dark Parmius was created. What in the heck did Vald do to you in your timeline?"

Dan growled he didn't want to discus himself although he was surprised that Danny hadn't told her. It was a rather sore subject for ghost to discuss how they died as she should know and besides she hadn't answered his question. An idea struck him suddenly one that he was fairly certain she wouldn't like. "Tell me how you became a half ghost and maybe I'll tell you how I became a full ghost."

Sam grimaced realizing instantly the boundary of etiquette she had crossed. "Sorry, I didn't…" she stopped shook her head then continued."Forget I asked ok and to answer your question Vlads dead so you don't get to hunt him down. Dark Parmius killed him when he deemed him useless. He didn't manifest as a ghost either so no torture or pleasure for you."

Silence prevailed for several minutes as Dan digested this new information.

"So Dark Parmius is the ghost I need to destroy if I want to resume my ruling as the most feared ghost in all the realms?" Dan asked, dark plans already coming together in his mind.

"Don't even think about it." Sam advised

"Why? Will you stop me?" Dan snorted in derision

The vines squeezed him the slightest bit and a very dangerous smile lit up Sams face. "Technically I already have but even if you did get out into the world you would find taking over a much harder task than you could imagine. I suppose I'll tell you now since there's no sense in holding back any information. The ghost zone no longer exists Dan."

Her words were like a physical blow to Dan and he gaped at her in a stunned silence. Before he could gather any sort of comeback she continued.

"Dark Parmius created a machine that merged the two worlds. Before and after he did that there was a war in which the whole world fought against his ghost armies. In other words everyone is very used to fighting ghosts and unlike in your timeline where you caught everyone off guard, the whole world is ready for any kind of ghostly assault you could possibly make. Besides if you are going to try and cause that much trouble I will just kill you hear and now."

At those words Dan found his voice. "And what makes you think it will be so easy to kill me? I could kill you in an instant Sam." He snarled not realizing he hadn't mocked her by using Sammy.

Sam raised her arm showing off the silver cuff that encircled her arm just behind the wrist bones. "It doesn't matter if you kill me. If I die you will die because of this cuff that is attached to your arm."

Dan eyed her wondering if she were messing with him. He didn't think so because he had noticed and tried to remove the cuff from his own arm. He hadn't been able to; in fact the dam thing had reacted as if it were a piece of him rather than a cuff that had just recently been attached. "Then you really can't kill me either." Dan said a slight feeling of relief running through him as he thought about the bands. Sam however chuckled dashing his relief to pieces.

"I can kill you without fear you just can't kill me. See the bands work a certain way that allows a weaker ghost to kill the stronger and not die from the connection. It's not by much but technically your power level is still slightly higher than mine. Any other questions?" she asked popping yet another piece of fruit into her mouth.

"That's not very fair." Dan answered

Sam shrugged "Villainous , evil people are never fair. You of all people should realize that."

"You're not a villain." Dan snickered picturing her with a cape and horns not realizing that at one time she had looked similar the first time she had fallen under Undergrowths control years and years before.

Sam eyed him wondering what had made him laugh. Deciding she didn't want to know she simply replied. "No I'm not a villain but I have fought and killed to try and protect the people I love and innocent people. In my mind you are a villain that's just as bad as Dark Parmius. However if you can put your insanity aside I think you can be a great help. We both know I can kill you here and now with little issue. My question at this point is what's stopping me?"


	26. Beetles and Crystals

**Long chapter this time around… To be totally honest it ran away from me and there just wasn't a good stopping point. Internet is still down but that just means I was able to finish making all my Christmas gifts on time this year! Hope everyone is having a good holiday season so far!**

 **Here is to staying safe in a mad world.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Dan felt a curious chill run through him at her words. She was right, Sam had proven to him that she would have no issues killing him and yet even though he had attacked her multiple times she had merely restrained him, had even healed him. Dan wondered why, wondered if she could see something in him he thought no longer existed. Silence filled the cave as Dan pondered his own actions over the last day and what he remembered just before being released from his prison. Before getting out of the thermos he had been talking to Clockwork. When Clockwork had first taken charge of the thermos he had simply ranted and raged, making whatever threats he could think up and snarling whatever insults he had learned in the past years. He knew a lot of insults in several languages and yet that had only kept him busy for all of a day. It had taken several months for him to get bored with the cursing and spitting at Clockwork every time he came near the thermos to chat. Then he tried antagonizing the great ghost but Clockwork had laughed at him every time almost always turning the tables on him in some way. He tried breaking out of the thermos but Clockworks abilities kept it strong and unbreakable. He didn't have the energy to break free and somehow Dan knew he never would. Dan didn't know how much time passed but eventually when Clockwork started talking to him Dan actually started to listen. Dan had learned all sorts of things from Clockwork from history to physics to simple survival skills. He told himself he was bored and since there was nothing better to do he might as well learn but in truth listening to Clockwork had started to make him feel normal again. Sometimes a feeling of rage would overcome him as he listened driving him to throw what most would call a tantrum. He didn't understand those waves of fury and Clockwork didn't seem to care so he just accepted them in the passing time before learning how to suppress them. Then one day Clockwork had come and told him that he was going to put Dan into a sleep similar to hibernation and when he awoke he would have to make a choice. He could come out and rejoin the world or he could be destroyed. Dan hadn't understood what Clockwork was going on about but before he could ask any sort of questions he had lost consciousness. The next thing he knew he sensed a presence outside the thermos and been dropped when he had asked a question. He had been released or at least the seal had been broken and he had found himself surrounded by ghosts and off to the side had been Sam. Age had done her no wrong and in his eyes she was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. An immediate sense of calm had fallen on him as he said her name but then he had been attacked by those stupid ghosts. She had run and Dan had briefly lost himself in the anger and bloodlust that always seemed to be lurking just beneath the surface of his mind. Then he had found her again and surprised her but she had fought back with absolutely no fear, waking him back up to the reality that she was alive and within his grasp. Sam had run again whether from him or the other ghosts Dan wasn't sure but he had already decided that he would not lose her again. In that mindset he had pursued her to this point and now Dan realized what Clockwork had done. He hadn't realized it before but all those years in Clockworks company had reformed him. He wasn't a good ghost by any means but he was no longer purely driven by hatred, rage, and evil deeds. Remembering Clockworks words Dan realized that his survival now depended Sam.

"What exactly do you want me to say Sam? I'm not a good ghost. In my timeline I destroyed both realms and killed millions. I came to your timeline and tried to kill you to seal my own future; I haven't done a single good thing since becoming a full ghost." A memory of a little girl named Fearless flashed briefly in Dans mind making him pause for a moment but then he decided that she didn't count against everything else he had done. "You know my crimes so what is it you want me to say?"

Sam sighed and to his absolute shock the vines started to loosen around his body retracting back into their seed forms. His feet touched the ground as hers did and Dan had to hide his grin when he realized he was taller than her by a full head. If he wanted to he could put his chin down comfortably on her head and for a moment he was sorely tempted to.

The idea was squashed as she stared up at him a look of determination and wariness etched into her features. "I am trusting another show of force will not be necessary. If you try and attack me I will destroy you, if you so much as twitch out of line I will beat you to a pulp, and I swear if you call me Sammy one more time I'll pump you so full of electricity you will be able to power a city for a month if you survive."

Dan couldn't hide the grin that spread across his face at her words. He really liked this new badass Sam but he didn't want her to realize it so pretending to be meek he asked "Anything else my Queen of Thorns?"

Sam winced "You're going to have to work on that because with that get up sarcasm doesn't do you a hint of good."

Dan paused looking down at his outfit as she turned away from him to pick up her glowy flower thing and backpack. "What's that supposed to mean?" he demanded walking after her to peer over her shoulder.

Sam rolled her eyes and held her plant up. "Never mind Dan. We need to figure out if those Goons on the surface are gone and heeeey!" she cried dropping her plant as Dan grabbed her shoulder and turned her intangible before shooting off through the ceiling.

"I have ghost powers and you made me drop my plant before I could get the seeds!" Sam complained as they passed through tons of rock.

Dan chuckled, he had wanted to grab her around the waist but he remembered how those black combat had hurt when she was merely human and he was a half ghost. Plus he had already pushed his luck beyond what he thought was fair. "Now you will have more energy if you need to fight." Dan answered and they both went silent as Sam stewed the last few feet of travel. Dan turned them both invisible as they came out of the ground and were treated to a very strange sight.

It was evening above ground and in the fading light Goons were swarming around the carcass of the beetle like flies around garbage. The Goons didn't notice their presence since they had come up behind some jagged rock on a slight rise so they had a nice view of the scene below with the added bonus of being somewhat hidden. Dan watched the Goons in annoyance and could practically feel their necks snapping like twigs in his hands. Without even realizing it a growl issued from his throat as he started to move forward. Sam grabbed him eliciting an extra loud snarl but he caught himself before he tried to strike out at her. Sam tugged him down before the Goons noticed his presence an eyebrow raised in question. Dan ignored her clenching his hands shut his claws pricking his palms as he fought to suppress the wave of aggression and annoyance that swamped him.

Managing to do so if only just barley he asked in a slightly strained voice "Why did you grab me? I was going to take care of the Goons before they noticed us."

Sam raised that same eyebrow this time mocking "Oh you mean you don't like to be grabbed? Besides we shouldn't destroy them just yet I want to know what those Goons are doing. There haven't been many instances when I've been able to simply observe their actions. It almost looks like they are taking samples or something."

Before he could think of a proper retort a loud squeal interrupted them coming from beyond the rock.

Without a word they both scrambled to the top of the rocks peering into the ever encroaching darkness where the Goons now hovered. The carcass of the beetle shivered and started to break apart near the center and Sam had a horrible foreboding feeling.

"Ok forget what I said before if that's what I think that is we can't let that thing hatch. You destroy the carcass and whatever is inside I'll take care of the Goons that get in the way." Sam said transforming.

They both leapt into the air soaring towards where the carcass sat shivering. "Don't think you're strong enough to take care of the Beetle yourself?" Dan asked unable to resist one last sally though he was happy to be rushing into battle once again.

Sam snorted. "With my powers it will take too long and I have no idea how this thing regenerates. You have the fire core. Burn it to ash."

"How?" Dan started but in the next instant they were upon the Goons and he had to turn his attention to the beetle carcass where the shell was starting to crack open. Dan activated his fire core and sent a burst of flames down on to the shell. The fire didn't even scorch the surface and he flew lower taking out a Goon or five as he did. The shell was smooth except in one place where a web of cracks breached the surface. He sent a powerful blast of ecto energy down at the cracks and was disappointed to only see a slight dent form. The beast inside squealed again as if sensing the danger it was in, and Dan realized he would have to crack the shell to fry what was inside. He landed on the shell and slammed an ecto charged fist into the center of the cracks. The impact sent a jolt through his whole body and made his hand ache. Ignoring the ache he slammed his fist down into the shell again this time breaking through. A series of clicks echoed from the shell and it rocked slightly as an orange eye glared at him from within. Instinctively Dan leapt into the air as a spiked leg stabbed through the tiny opening making it slightly bigger.

"Oh no you don't." Dan growled and let loose a fire attack funneling it down into the hole. A god awful shriek issued from the shell forcing him to stop and cover his ears. At the cry Goons began to swarm towards him and he could see Sam was having difficulties as well.

"Get down here!" Dan yelled to her and to his surprise after locating him she did blasting any Goon that followed too close.

"Is it dead?" she asked arriving at his side while the Goons surrounded them from above.

"No cover your ears." Dan answered and took a deep breath.

Sam realized what he was about to do and she slapped her hands to her ears dropping from the air so she was next to his feet. She didn't even try to stop him realizing that if they were going to kill this new Beetle they would have to work together without the Goons influence.

Dans Wail shattered the encroaching night shredding the Goons that had surrounded them causing dissolved ectoplasm to rain down as a mist. He turned in a circle as the Goon on his other side began to move forward in an attack, happy to see that Sam had taken his advice and covered her ears without complaint. Finally there were no more Goons and he cut off his attack slumping slightly from the excess energy drain. His vision started to go foggy and suddenly Sams face filled his vision her hand gently patting his face.

"Hey don't pass out on me just yet." She said and he sat up realizing that he was now sitting on the shell. Sam sat beside him a strange look on her face. It was concern he realized and as he looked her over he could see that she had been injured while fighting the Goons. A few scratches showed on her pale skin and he felt a surge of satisfaction that he had been able to destroy all the Goons that had dared hurt her. The shell beneath him shivered slightly and Dan looked around curiously. The hole he made was several feet away and every so often a horn or scythe like appendage would poke from it each time making the hole a little bit bigger. A truly ugly plant grew near the hole weeping a blue resinous liquid into it.

"What?" Dan asked feeling wiped and unsure as to what he should say. Being tired was a strange feeling really, usually he could use his wail much longer and not even feel a thing. He honestly couldn't remember the last time he felt so worn but it had to be a long time ago.

"You went spacey there for a minute. I pulled you down here since all the Goons are gone. Nice shot by the way." Sam answered and watched as he moved his hands trying to light up one of them with ghostly energy. Realizing what he was doing Sam reached out covering the hand with one of hers and sent a bit of energy down the physical connection. His hand brightened briefly and Sam could once again feel that strange bond like sensation. She hadn't been going nuts those two times she had heard his voice and not wanting to question how or why it got there she reached out like she would if she were checking his physical body for wounds. What she found concerned her, his energy levels were low, dangerously so and while she was sure that he wouldn't dissolve if he exhausted all his energy he could very well go into a catatonic state if he were not careful. Whipping off her backpack she rummaged through it before pulling out an orange flavored Fenton ecto bar. "Eat this right now before you body goes into shock." Sam said unwrapping the bar and shoving it into his mouth as Dan started to protest.

Dan was surprised to find that the bar was good. He had never been an orange flavored person but he practically inhaled the rest of the bar his core craving more even as he finished it. Sam handed another to him and stood as he inhaled that one too. She left him a third and moved forward a clear blue glint of light catching her eye. With a grimace she picked up yet another ectocrystal. It was a decent one not as pure as the crystals undergrowth had given her but still good enough that it would power something like a Goon. Sam had figured out why these Goons had seemed so different or maybe more aware. Dark Parmius was using the ectocrystals to supplement their power and give the creations a more stable core. She had found a half destroyed primary Goon and had seen the sparking around its center as the crystal mimicked a damaged core. The Goon had dissolved moments later unable to heal the damage done to its body and the crystal had reverted back to its normal state but the information she had gained was invaluable. These Goons had been an upgraded version which meant trouble wasn't far behind. The shell beneath her feel shook slightly and Sam directed a glare at the hole her plant was dripping its very flammable sap into. She was going to have to take care of the beetle before it fully hatched and she hoped that with three ectobars in him that Dan would be able to light up the beetle before they left. Regular fire would work she supposed but ghost fire burned hotter and consumed ectoplasm which would destroy the beetle far more efficiently. Dropping the ectocrystal into a pouch with the others she had collected she moved back over to where Dan was slowly getting to his feet.

"Do you have enough energy to blast this thing with some of your fire?" Sam asked tapping the shell with her foot for emphasis.

Dan nodded and floated up into the air forming a glowing ball of flame in his hands. Sam collected her plant and floated up to join him before he let the ball drop into the hole. There was a brief whoosh and flames lit up the interior for a moment allowing them to see the full shape of the beetle inside. The Beetle shrieked and thrashed shaking the shell around it as it burned. Sam covered her ears and Dan added more flames to the opening creating a literal oven inside the shell. The shriek cut off after a few seconds and soon the thrashing stopped as well. Flames licked the opening and spread following the trail of sap that had leaked down the shell. Soon the whole carcass was in flames and Sam pulled Dan up higher in the air as the heat became unbearable. Dan leaned against her and Sam grabbed him before he started to fall. Sending a quick surge of energy into him Sam found that he had used what little energy he had to send the fire into its current raging state.

"Idiot!" Sam snapped and knowing nothing could survive the raging inferno below her she flew holding onto Dan back through the ground and into the cave.

Her plant still sat withholding the tiniest hint of a glow, looking rather forlorn in the darkness. The glow brightened rapidly as she moved towards it stopping only when its glow filled most of the cave with light. Gently she laid Dan down flat and lifted the plant up letting it wrap tendrils around her arm so it would be secure as she worked.

She was going to have to give him the other crystal she realized. Dan's body couldn't pull enough ectoenergy from the environment on its own and the amount of power he wielded left him unable to create a balance. The crystal would allow him to recover faster and have an easier time adjusting to the new and less ecto abundant environment. Swiftly she pulled the pouch of lesser ectocrystals out and dumped them out of the bag before placing the whole lot of them on his chest. That done she pulled out the other ectocrystal Undergrowth had given her from its hidden pocket. Dan didn't have any pockets that Sam could see and she knew he wouldn't want to wear any kind of pouch on his waist so he could keep the crystal on him. With a sigh Sam pulled a small spool of wire from her bag and wrapped the larger end of the crystal before looping it over so it could hang off some cord she cut to make a necklace. He probably wouldn't like the idea but he could always hide it under his shirt if he wanted. She fastened the cord around his neck and let the crystal fall to his chest before checking his energy levels again. They were still low but stable and Sam knew that he would probably be unconscious for a while so she transformed back to human, pulled out her sleeping bag, and went to sleep herself.


	27. Underground

**So I am back with the New Year! I am sorry I disappeared but between no internet and traveling plus two holidays I haven't had any time to keep up with things. Plus I figured that the last chapter was a good pausing point for a mini vacation. Not to worry though I am back and will continue updating on my fairly consistent 3 day schedule. I have also discovered a new show on my vacation so you all may get to see a whole other side of my writing soon! Hehe I shall have to keep you all in suspense. In any case though here is the first new chapter of the New Year and we get a glimpse of how Sam became a half ghost. Enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Sam woke up to being poked, with a stick. Growling Sam sent a burst of energy into the stick causing it to grow some small branches and making Dan drop it with a yelp.

"Why are you poking me with a stick?" Sam asked lifting the branch off her while pulling her energy out of it leaving the wood dead and lifeless once again.

Dan shrugged "I didn't want to get zapped or wrapped up in vines again. Next time I will throw pebbles at you or something."

Sam leveled a glare at him and dropped the stick on the ground before standing. She turned the sleeping bag intangible to get the dirt off before sucking it back up into its cylinder ignoring the feeling of dried blood crinkling on her skin. The feeling annoyed her however, she was covered in dirt, her own blood and Goon ectoplasm, not to mention she could still smell smoke on her skin. With a sigh she wished for a bath then turned intangible letting the dirt and other things stuck to her skin and clothes slide off as she walked a few steps away leaving a small dust cloud behind.

"Neat trick, there are more Goons back above us although the carcass is nothing but ash at this point. I think they are still looking for us but it's hard to tell." Dan said

Dans words made Sam freeze. "You went out there?" she demanded and Dan shrugged

"How else would I get a stick? Besides we needed to know so we could decide on where to go from here right?"

Sam grimaced and decided that he was right however they couldn't hide in this little cave forever. Actually they could since she could provide them with food and water as well as light but Sam shuddered to even think about doing something so crazy.

"Well I suppose we could blast our way through but I'm still pretty tired from all the fighting yesterday and I really don't want to go intangible through the rocks for miles at a time its... creepy." Sam said not wanting to elaborate.

"Speaking of rock why was I covered in those strange crystals when I woke up?" Dan asked fingering the wrapped crystal that hung about his neck. "I put the shards and the pouch in your bag."

"Those crystals concentrate ecto energy in the environment and amplify it as well as radiate it. For most ghosts there isn't enough energy so these crystals will help supplement it. Most ghosts still have to eat and sleep nowadays though." Sam explained although she was a little surprised that he had left the crystal on.

"Ah so that's why I haven't been regenerating as fast as I normally do." Dan said his voice soft clenching his hand around the crystal. "This was obviously yours. Do you want it back?"

He moved to slip the cord off his neck and Sam stopped him. "I have my own, that one is for you since I have no desire to cart your unconscious form around all the time. I didn't think you had any pockets so I wrapped it as a necklace. Wear it under your shirt if you don't like it."

For once Dan didn't complain or make any kind of retort instead he slipped the crystal and cord under his shirt while saying "Thank you Sam… I will treasure it." Sam wasn't sure if she was supposed to hear that last part since he said it low enough that a normal person wouldn't have been able to hear it. The worst part was she could feel herself starting to blush for some reason and was glad for the dimness of the cave.

Awkward silence fell for several minutes as Sam dropped her sleeping bag cylinder into its appropriate spot and pulled out two more ecto bars. She was sad to see that after these she wouldn't have anymore. Clearing her throat Sam looked around needing something to do and spotted a dark area leading off the cave. "Here eat this Dan. That dark area looks like it might be a tunnel or something. We should check it out."

The dark area was indeed a cave and though she initially balked at the idea of traveling underground Sam realized that they didn't have much of a choice with the Goons still overhead. Dan didn't seem to have any issues with the idea and as of now they had been traveling through the cave system for several hours. Some areas were wide enough that you could drive a car down and other areas slimmed down to the point that Sam had to take off her backpack then turn sideways in order to get through. In those spots Sam seemed to become slightly panicky especially when they went on for a long stretch. Dan on the other hand simply turned intangible to get through those areas and wondered why Sam didn't do the same. For the most part they walked in silence until Dan became bored. In attempt to alleviate his boredom he began asking questions about the world above and to his surprise Sam answered him. Dan stuck fairly close to Sam though he told himself it was because she had the only light. After yet another hour of walking the cave started to get smaller again and Sams answers became shorter as the space became tighter. Finally it came to a point where Sam had to turn sideways and Dan took her bag this time as he heard her grumble in annoyance. Dan wasn't sure why but he decided to stay tangible this time and followed her deeper into the crack. After several minutes of moving forward at a crawl Dan noticed that Sams breathing and heart rate had increased drastically.

"Sam are you ok?" Dan asked watching as her movement forward became slightly jerky.

"Im fine." She answered but her voice was too high and strained for him to believe her. She kept jerking herself forward and as the space became tighter still, Dan felt a thread of panic weave through his mind making him pause.

' _Close too close.'_

"Sam?" Dan questioned as he realized the thought hadn't been his own.

She had come to a stop just a few steps in front of him her heart rate sky high and her breathing heavy. Small sparks began to travel up her body and Dan eyed her cautiously wondering what in the heck was going on. Suddenly he realized she was either on the verge of or having a panic attack.

"Sam go ghost." Dan said as he wiggled closer. She made no sign that she heard him her breathing swiftly becoming fast short gasps. Dan knew what he had to do, he could vaguely remember the times he'd had a panic attack when he was younger. Gritting his teeth he reached forward and grabbed her shoulder. Dan had expected pain from the sparks of electricity that were crawling on her, what he didn't expect was the wave of emotion and the vision he was suddenly privy to.

 _He, no she was in a space that was barely recognizable as the interior of a car. The side and floor of the car was warped up pinning her down to the door leaving her unable to move. The seat she had been sitting on was a mass of twisted upholstery and jagged edges. Slowly her eyes closed and her head fell back to rest back on the door. She hadn't had a seatbelt on, she had been moving to sit next to her parents when they had been struck. Not having a seatbelt on had saved her life as ironic as that seemed. The thought broke as pain knifed its way through her chest and abdomen. Sam ignored the pain, or at least managed it so it didn't overwhelm her mind. Fighting ghosts with Danny had given her the ability to do so though she could tell that this time she was badly injured._

 _"Mom? Dad?" Sam whispered her voice echoing strangely in the tight space. They didn't answer and Sam opened her eyes the darkness of the car dissolving back into fuzzy shapes. Green light shined crazily through one of the shattered windows and from that light Sam could see what was left of the interior of the car. Liquid had begun to pool on what was left of the floor and she could just make out her mother's twisted body before her a look of mild surprise etched into her features. Horrified Sam screamed wishing for the painless darkness and her scream carried over echoing loud in the tiny space._

Dan cursed as the memory released him, turned intangible, and grabbed Sam. Her scream stopped and she slumped in his grip unconscious as the flowers light immediately began to fade. Dan shot forward using the flowers remaining light to aim for the surface. They had been in these dam tunnels long enough for anything to lose track of them and as the last of the flowers light faded they burst from the ground into the warm slightly humid jungle air. After the silent darkness of the cave the jungle seemed overly loud and bright so it took Dan a moment to adjust. Green surrounded them on all sides and Dan laid Sam down for a moment as he checked their surroundings.

"Plants, plants, and more plants." Dan grumbled finding he missed the quiet darkness of the cave already.

He stood for several minutes allowing his senses to fully acclimate to his surroundings before he slipped Sams bag onto his back. Not wanting to disturb her now that her breathing and heart rate had fallen back to a normal pace for a halfa, Dan lifted her up into his arms before floating forward at an easy pace.

He had been traveling for about an hour when Sam finally began to stir. Dan didn't bother stopping and the next time he looked down he realized she was wide awake. "Next time tell me when you have an aversion to something. I may have been able to help or we could have found a different way to go." Dan growled still not stopping his movement forward.

"I didn't know, and you can put me down now." Sam answered her cheeks turning a rosy color. She hated being carried like she was a helpless cripple.

Dan finally paused "How could you not know?"

Putting a hand against his chest she shoved slightly trying to wiggle out of his grip. "I've never been in a situation where I have had to travel underground, besides I've never had a problem sitting in confined spaces before." She said thinking of Undergrowths pod she had ridden in to get to the edge of his territories.

Dan held her tight refusing to let her go and Sam looked up, glaring at him wondering what in the world he was thinking. "So if you have never had a problem before what happened down there?"

"Ugh!" Sam cried and shoved hard against his chest catching him off guard enough that she was able to twist out of his arms. This was a mistake however because she hadn't realized that they were floating nearly 15 feet from the forest floor. Before she even fell past his toes Dan grabbed one of her wrists and lifted her up so they were on eye level. Gripping his wrist with her free hand she kicked him hard in the thigh actually making him wince."You could have warned me that we were hovering 15 feet in the air!"

"Don't change the subject." Dan snapped avoiding a second well placed kick to his crotch.

Dark green rings flashed about her waist transforming her and her free hand lit up with blue cracking energy. "Let me go!"

"No answer the dam question!" Dan replied grabbing her free hand as it swung towards his face. To his surprise the electricity didn't hurt. It merely prickled against his skin in an uncomfortable pattern though Dan realized that could change very quickly.

Sams eyes blazed with barely concealed fury as she struggled in his grip. He was stupidly strong and it infuriated her that she couldn't break free "Why does it matter so much?! I freaked out and passed out! Get over it already!"

His next words however made her freeze faster than an ice attack. "I saw it. That vision or memory or whatever it was. I grabbed you to try and get you to calm down and I saw it."

Sam went limp and Dan released her, his face unreadable. Slowly she floated towards the ground, Dan following close behind as the memory from the cave played however brief in her mind. She had felt the edges of a panic attack as they had slowly made their way through that crack but she had been able to suppress it. When the crack had become even tighter however she had lost to the flood of panic inducing memories that swamped her mind. Her feet touched the ground and Dans voice broke through the unpleasant thoughts.

"Your heart rate is starting to climb again." He pointed out wondering if what he was doing was a good idea. He had lost the art of subtlety a long time ago but he knew that letting this pass as if nothing had happened wouldn't do her any good in the long run. If his survival depended on hers he needed Sam to be in top shape regardless of mental or physical scars. Another part of his mind whispered that survival wasn't the entire reason but he crushed the sentiment instantly deciding he had been far too lenient already.

Sam looked up at him her eyes wide and voice shaky as she said "It's how I died."


	28. Death Day

**New chapter! This time you get the full story on how Sam died…well half died. Enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Dan visibly recoiled as a curse slipped from his lips.

"So much for leniency."He muttered as he held his hands up in a show of surrender. If he had known that was what he'd seen down in the cave there was no way he would have pushed her. After all there were some lines that even he didn't like to cross.

Sam ignored him dropping to her knees and pressed a hand to her forehead wondering what in the heck was wrong with her. She could feel her heart rate climbing, her breathing steadily becoming harsher, hell she could feel the edges of another panic attack coming but that didn't make sense because she was in an open area safe. She hadn't had panic attacks in years even before she had been captured by Dark Parmius and Sam wondered if having her memories returned had done something to her. A whimper escaped her lips as her head pounded energy surging through her shaking frame. Sam fought the surge, while memories drifting through her consciousness, coming unbidden to the forefront of her mind. A figure dropped down on their knees before her and Sam felt a hint of concern drift across her consciousness. Forcing her eyes to focus and realized it was Dan and that he was saying something but she couldn't hear him. Annoyance then resignation flashed across his features before he grabbed her shoulders firmly.

 _'You're going to tear yourself apart! You need to let something go!'_ Dan called his face a mask of concentration.

His voice was a beacon in the madness and in the next instant she let go. Memories flashed past her minds eye before she was fully pulled into one that began on a warm day when she was 16.

 _She had turned 16 that night and her parents had decided against her will of course to have a massive party two weeks from the date of her birthday. They wanted her to debut because that was how her mother had done it and Sam hated the idea. They rented a party space invited all her classmates as well as her entire extended family. Sam pitched a fit because all she had wanted was a sleepover with her three best friends and a movie marathon. Her mother insisted on the party but in an effort to make it easier her mother was allowing Sam to actually make decisions. Sam had chosen the colors (green, purple, silver, and black) she had been allowed to help choose party decorations as well as her own dress although her mom had valiantly tried to get her to choose a pink one in the same design. Her mom allowed a karaoke machine and some other games although Sam refused to allow her to show home videos of her when she was younger. Her mom had even agreed to let Danny be her date mostly because he was the town hero and savior of the world, however progress was progress. Sam still hated the idea but she hated it less and less as the days went by. Finally the day of the party arrived and her parents left early to finalize the preparations trusting that Danny would get her to the party at the correct time. Her grandma helped her get ready though she wouldn't be attending. She had a bad cold and didn't have the energy to leave the house. Sam swore she was faking because a little cold had never stopped her before and her grandma didn't like most of the people that were going to be at the party but she couldn't prove it. Sam also figured that they both didn't need to be tortured and her grandma had already promised a smaller more fun party when her parents went out of two in two weeks. Finally the time came for Danny to arrive and he looked incredibly handsome in his black suit with a silver tie and emerald green undershirt. The phantom symbol adorned his cufflinks and when he walked in he could only gape jaw on the floor as he saw Sam. She was in an emerald green gown that matched his undershirt and had purple gem like stones covering the outermost chiffon layer. Her hair was completely down and he noticed for the first time that it had grown out quite a bit. He had taken her hand nervously and kissed it turning both their cheeks red. Her grandma had snapped a photo to both of their embarrassment but it would become one of Sams favorite photos of them in the future. Danny had then transformed picked her up and flew them to the party. To Sams surprise the party was actually fun and she had a good time surrounded by her three best friends. Sam was going to go home with Danny and she changed into a more comfortable red dress with yellow vein like highlights for the ride home since they planned on going to the park and watching a meteor shower. However as they were getting ready to leave Dannys ghost sense went off and Sam decided to ride to her home with her parents instead. Danny went out to fight off whatever ghost had shown up and Sam climbed into the limo to sit opposite of her parents in the back seat. They drove off and Sam thanked her parents for the party. Her mother was ecstatic that everything had gone so well and she started chattering about new parties and dresses. Sam had laughed and feeling generous since she'd really had a good time and her mom had worked really hard she decided to move so she could sit next to her. Sam unbuckled her seatbelt and stood in the slowly moving car. As she stepped forward her moms face lit up with a giant smile and neither of them saw the tow truck that plowed head on into them. Sam would find out much later that the man had a heart attack and lost control of the truck dying in the accident as well. The limo was flipped and because of the speed of the truck the limo was twisted like a pretzel before slamming to a halt on top of a power pole. She had awakened in agony but she had fought back the pain as she tried to figure out what in the hell had happened. They had been hit by something she knew and she tried to unpin herself from her position. The floor was buckled around her and Sam wondered how she had managed to survive even as she called out to her parents. Green light flooded in the shattered windows and Sam was able to see why her parents didn't answer her calls. They were both dead. There was no way they survived the injuries to their bodies. A scream echoed in the twisted remains of the car and in the next moment she lost consciousness just barely making out Danny reaching for her through what had been the roof._

 _Danny told her what happened after she had passed out. He managed to pull her from the car with his intangibility but she had been badly injured in the wreck. The driver and her parents were dead and Danny was doing all he could to sustain her life. She had a badly broken leg, was slowly bleeding out from deep lacerations, and her body was going into shock. Danny had used his cryokinesis to stop the bleeding and to try and fend off the shock but it wasn't enough and Danny was forced to watch as her heart stopped due to all of the trauma her body had endured. Danny performed CPR in a desperate attempt to get her heart restarted. After all he could hear the ambulance coming and yet Danny knew it wouldn't get to them in time. He had one more option and Danny took it not realizing the consequences of his actions. Months before he had discovered that if he coated his hands in ectoplasmic energy and rubbed them opposite of each other he could create a charge of electricity. He mostly used this new skill as a prank since it took too much concentration to build up a dangerous enough charge to use in a real battle. He did it now allowing the charge to build to the same voltage a defibrillator would use. Swiftly he pressed his hands down into the appropriate places on her chest and released the charge. Her whole torso jerked upward and Dannys superior hearing picked up the smallest thump a moment later. Her whole body shuddered as she gasped and small sparks of electricity arced from her body. Danny fell back in surprise as a downed power line slithered past him the, sparking end connecting sharply with one of her outstretched arms. Electricity seared the air forcing Danny to shield himself as dark green rings wrapped around Sams waist and traveled up her body. The colors of her dress inverted as her injuries healed before his eyes and the night air went still as the power went out for two city blocks. Danny jerked the dead power line away from Sam and reached out to her his one hand initially going through her arm as her form settled. Danny tried again and reached out with his power finding to his surprise the sensation of a core within Sam. There was no trace of his ice within her either and realizing that he had just turned her into a half ghost and unsure of the repercussions to what he had done Danny decided to take her away before anyone else arrived on the scene. A second flash occurred as Sam stirred and her outfit returned to normal as the paramedics arrived on the other side of the twisted pile of metal that had once been two vehicles. Doors opened and Danny turned them both invisible swiftly flying them back to Sams house where he knew that Valerie, Tucker, and Sams grandma would already be waiting. They had enough secret medical supplies stored at Sams house for them to treat Sam if needed but since all her injuries had effectively healed themselves by the time Danny arrived at her home, nothing but a bag of saline was really needed. Danny had explained what he found at the wreck as well as what happened with Sam not knowing what to expect from her. Her grandma had taken the news in stride although she was devastated by the news that Sams parents hadn't survived. She thanked Danny for saving Sams life or rather half of it and leaving Sam in his care went to the front door knowing she should be expecting cops soon. Valerie managed to get an IV started but Sam kept turning intangible causing it to fall out. They took turns staying up with Sam watching for any problems while Sams grandma dealt with the cops._

 _It had taken Sam a full day to wake up and when she did she was very confused. She remembered the wreck but was confused as to how she was home uninjured. Danny had nervously told her what happened and Sam could only stare at him in shock before turning invisible accidently. It had taken weeks before she had full mastery over her powers, and Sam had skipped school during that time not wanting to deal with people in general. She had to go to her parent's funeral and Danny was at her side through it all._

The memory started to fade though the emotional toll didn't as a strange feeling surged through her. Sams eyes snapped open to find Dan gazing at her openmouthed clearly in shock. He had seen the memories, Sam realized and a mixture of emotions flooded her mind. Sam tried to shove the emotions away and as she did a pinprick of light formed between her palms. Sam felt a second surge as the pinprick grew brighter. Unable to recall the energy Sam watched it build in horror as it fought her death grip while she tried and failed to force it to disperse. Instead the energy rebounded on itself growing stronger and Sam glanced up to see Dan still sitting before her staring at the now softball sized lump of energy she was trying to contain.

 _'Move!'_ Sam instinctively shouted in her mind not trusting herself to speak and lose her concentration.

Dan surged sideways out of the way as she lost control of the buildup and released the power. A white cone of pure energy sprouted from her hands blasting the ground and plant life turning them to ash in an instant. Green rings changed her back to human as the power dispersed in great arcing bolts of electricity and as she pitched forward onto her hands. She gasped refusing to pass out and shook her head feeling horribly nauseous. Electricity arced from the ground mere feet away and she sensed rather than saw Dan move behind her as the electricity crawled closer. A moment later it arced up into Sam's hands causing her to jerk back upright in surprise. It didn't hurt however and the remaining energy in the area followed that first arc up out of the ground and into her hands where it dispersed in her body making her feel better almost instantaneously. The jungle was silent the area spread before her an ashy wasteland for about 25 feet in a fan like pattern.

"What in the hell was that?" Dan asked and Sam turned her upper body to look at him.

"That's a loaded question." Sam muttered then louder said "I don't know that's the first time it's happened. Maybe it's a new power?"

Concern and anger warred on Dan's face before finally settling on something in between. "Well whatever it was I hope the next time you have better control over it because it seemed to be nearly as strong as my wail. What about the rest?"

Sam glared at him "Rest of what?" she demanded feeling a headache starting to form.

Dan crossed his arm in front of his chest a frown of concentration forming. _'This.'_

His voice echoed in her mind and Sam gaped at him. She shouldn't have been surprised that he had noticed it so fast. After all a bond works both ways and whether it was due to the bands or something else there was a bond between them. Suddenly she was very glad that she was sitting down.

"And those memories." Dan said this time out loud.

Sam sighed and shook her head giving up. "It's how I became a half ghost. I pretty much died in the car accident and Danny managed to restart my heart. The Yetis think that Dannys ectoenergy bound to my spirit to the physical plane and when the ectoshock went through me to restart my heart it refused my body and spirit changing me into a half ghost. We don't know for sure since I'm the only half host created the way I was and no one else has had their heart restarted by a ghost so…" She said it tonelessly and was surprised when Dan said nothing instead he simply sat down off to her side looking at the charred land before Sam.


	29. Eaten

**Ahahahahaha I literally woke up my friend laughing while writing this. I still die of laughter when I reread it. Also something of interest to note this story is now 95 pages long in the word document… WOW…**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Neither one of them wanted to be the first to speak so the silence stretched for several minutes and Sam for one was glad. She was tired, hungry and for a moment she wondered if Dan was upset about seeing her memories. Before she could ask, Dan caught her off guard as he suddenly started to speak.

"When everyone, including you died in my timeline I went to live with Vlad because no one else wanted me. Vlad ripped me from my human half in an attempt to do something." Dan gripped his forehead suddenly going quiet.

A feeling of horror seeped through Sam as she digested this bit of news and unable to keep the surprise from her face or voice she asked "He ripped you out?"

Dans head jerked up something else clearly on his mind "Hmm? Oh… yes and I in turn ripped his ghost half out and combined with it to gain more power." Something twinged in the back of his mind as if he were forgetting something important but for his afterlife Dan couldn't remember what it was.

Sam whistled softly breaking his concentration. "No wonder you both reacted that way…" Sam murmured "Why are you telling me this now though?"

Dan shrugged "I said in the cave if you told me how you died I would return the favor."

Sam gaped at him "Yeah but that was an accident! Or at least something I couldn't control."

"Doesn't matter I keep my word accident or not." Dan growled "Although I want to know how I was able to see your memories because that was disorienting to say the least."

Sam looked down at the ground noticing a tiny half burned plant just outside the field of destruction before her. Unable to simply let it die she reached forward cupping her hands around it and sent a burst of power into it to heal, strengthen, and make it grow. As soon as the plat began to put out tiny leaves Sam spoke grateful that Dan had given her a moment to collect her thoughts.

"Danny and I had a bond when he was alive and while we couldn't communicate we could sense each others mood and sometimes he could tell what I was thinking. He could also find me no matter where I went. He used to cheat when we played hide and seek with Danni and the other kids. When he died that bond died with him or I thought it did. When we got hit with the synergy bands it must have reactivated it and since you are technically Dannys ghost half it connected with you." Sam said slowly as she grew the tiny plant into a full sized bush.

"Can you block information from the bond?" Dan asked curiously

Finally Sam looked up at him. "I don't know. Danny and I never tried blocking each other because half the time we forgot it was there. Besides this bond is different from the one I had with Danny. It is stronger somehow."

"I suppose that's because I'm stronger than him huh?" Dan asked his voice dripping with arrogance as he stood puffing his chest out proudly.

"Your stupidity is showing again." Sam answered sarcastically "From what I remember he kicked your butt when he was only 14."

Dan snarled at this reminder and turned towards her one hand glowing faintly with ectoenergy.

"Oooh so scary look I can do that too even as a human." Sam said raising a hand and letting the green energy cover it.

The bushes rattled several feet away in the opposite direction of where they were sitting. Feeling annoyed at Sams comment yet not wanting to attack her directly since that always seemed to end badly for him, Dan fired off an ectoblast into the bushes in an attempt to release some of his mounting irritation. There was a small squeal and something that looked like a cross between a bunny and ball flopped from the bushes.

Sam twisted and seeing the animal twitching with scorched fun she surged to her feet instantly furious. "What the hell did you do that for?"

Dan shrugged "Because I could and besides I don't care. At least we can eat it now."

"I'm a vegetarian!" Sam snapped as he ignored her and began to move towards the still twitching animal.

The animal was even stranger up close. Its head was like a bunnies with long fuzzy ears and its whole body was covered with long thick looking fur that showed a scorch mark from where he hit it. Its body was too round to be a bunny and it didn't seem to have a hindquarters. A thick bald tail stretched into the bushes that the animal had fallen out of.

"What in the heck is this thing?" Dan wondered aloud nudging it with a booted foot.

"If you cant identify it you probably shouldn't mess with it. When the worlds merged new species cropped up and several of them can harm or eat ghosts." Sam warned. She was furious that he had killed a defenseless animal but she didn't want to withhold vital information from him either.

Dan snorted in derision. "This thing? Hurt me?" he asked lifting the small animal by the scruff as he turned to fully face Sam.

A look of disgust flashed across her features "I changed my mind you're a complete…" she paused and the strangest look crossed her face as he heard the bushes behind him rustle. Slowly almost warily Sam took a step back."Um, Dan I think you should drop that." She said as she went ghost her hands turning green with ectoenergy.

A sensation of moving air washed over him and Dan decided not to argue as he tried and failed to drop the limp form. The fur seemed to come alive in his grasp wrapping around his hand trapping it. Dan shook his hand trying to fling it off and when that didn't work he tried intangibility but he couldn't seem to access his ghost powers. The fur he realized was somehow blocking his ghost powers and he jerked his arm forward feeling the slightest of return tugs from what he had thought was this creatures tail. A gurgle echoed behind him and annoyed by this turn of events Dan spun around to face this new threat to find a large open mouth in his way. What he had thought was a tail was actually a tether of some kind and it was anchored in the beasts mouth. At that moment Dan realized that the bunny creature was actually a lure.

"It's a bad idea to try and eat me." Dan snarled "I am…"

The beast moved far quicker than Dan thought possible as the tether went taught jerking him forward. Before he could react or even fire off an ectoblast its jaws were around him enveloping him in slimy darkness.

Sam watched both horrified and amused as Dan tried and failed to intimidate the creature then was nearly swallowed whole in the next instant. Only Dans legs stuck out of the beasts mouth and it slimed its way out of the bushes moving towards where Sam stood. The creature was some kind of worm like thing and Sam realized that what Dan had grabbed must have been a lure for other animals. The creature jerked sideways as Dans legs flailed and Sam unable to contain herself busted out laughing.

 _'Help me!'_ Dans voice snarled in Sams mind as she moved back out of the creatures range still laughing.

 _'I wish I had a camera!'_ Sam replied after taking a moment to find the connection.

Faintly she could hear Dan roar from inside the beast and it shivered as it tried to finish consuming Dans flailing legs.

"Ok, ok, I'm coming!" Sam gasped tears in her eyes from laughing so hard. Swiftly she circled the beast looking for a weak point as she haphazardly peppered its hide with ectoblasts. The beasts hide was armored so she knew that she wasn't actually doing damage Sam just wanted to annoy it and keep it from eating Dan fully. The beast tried to follow her tentacle like projections slicing through the air as it tried to prevent her from circling around its body. Sam couldn't see any eyes on the creature but it didn't seem to need any as its mouth with Dans flailing legs tracked her position. The creature was slow though and Sam darted in under its tentacles slicing one completely in half with a small ectoblade as it came too close. Sam wasn't sure if her ghost powers would work on the tentacles and she didn't want to find out if she wouldn't be able to phase through the tentacles since Dan didn't seem to be able to phase through the creatures mouth.

 _'Will you hurry up?!'_ Dan practically screamed in her mind _'If I was human I'd be dead!'_

Sam winced and decided not to reply since she needed her wits for the task at hand. There was less armor near the tail and Sam focused her attacks on that portion of the creature causing it to release a dreadful howl. Dans hand flew from the darkness of the beasts maw and locked on to the ridge of the animals mouth. Faintly Sam heard bones crunching and the beast slung its head sideways another howl issuing from its mouth its tentacles going limp. Sam darted forward in the animal's distraction pulling her larger ectoblade from its sheath. In the next instant she slammed both blades deep into a rounded bulge near the creature's tail.

The whole beasts body contorted its tail flipping up and throwing her bodily into a nearby patch of vines that were happy to soften the blow, while it spit Dan out having decided that this meal was far too much trouble to hold on to. The worm beast snaked its way from the clearing letting off a moaning howl every so often as it slithered rapidly away.

Sam wiped off her daggers and stood unhurt as she brushed herself off while sliding her daggers back into their sheath. Pushing through some plants Sam spied Dan slowly sitting up in the blackened area that Sam had created earlier. Freezing in place at the sight of him Sam slapped a hand over her mouth to prevent any sound from escaping. Dan was covered in clear gooey slime from the top of his head to his boots. His hair was plastered down to his skull and for the first time held some sort of definition rather than being all wavy and fire like. His cape was twisted around him clinging like shrink wrap as the side of his body that hit the ground was coved in ashes and other forest litter.

Sam dropped to her knees and unable to hold it in any longer burst out laughing. Dan twisted around to glare at her the disgusted look on his face as he tried to wipe some slime off making Sam fall forward she was laughing so hard.

"I can't go intangible! What is this stuff!" Dan cried as he tried and failed to access his powers.

Sam managed just barely to get a hold of herself as she rolled onto her stomach propping herself up on her elbows "I warned you…" she managed tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Why don't you try it since you think it's so funny!" Dan snarled and from his crumpled position launched himself at her.

Sams eyes went wide and even as she yelled "Don't you dare!" she slammed her arms into the ground sending herself shooting straight up into the air.

Dan jumped to catch her and his cape unexpectedly plastered itself to his legs messing up his trajectory. Instead of slamming into her as planned his hand closed on empty air mere centimeters from her booted feet before he came crashing back down through the undergrowth unable to even fly while covered in slime.

Sam laughed uproariously clutching at her aching sides as Dan shoved his way free of the plants. Bits of plant matter covered the side of his body not layered with ashes and he glared up at Sam as he ripped his cape off. Deciding to ignore her he tried to wipe some of the mess off with the inside of his cape though it wasn't going as well as he had hoped since it was covered in slime as well. Sam stayed in the air not trusting him to behave while covered in slime. When she calmed down enough that she could breathe Sam moved over to a common vine hanging from the trees and sent her power down it searching for water. A moment later she found a river that was close by and she decided to let Dan know since he seemed ready to give up on trying to wipe the slime off with his cape.

"If you want to wash off there is a river nearby." Sam called

Dans head shot up and he stopped smearing the ashes and leaf litter stuck to him with his cape.

"Show me." He said and Sam floated forward managing not to crack up again as he thrashed his way through the plants. Deciding he had been punished enough and not wanting him to injure the defenseless plants further she asked them to move out of his way opening a clear path all the way to the water.

Without even saying thanks Dan sprinted down the path forcing Sam to fly faster to keep up. They burst into open space and Dan launched himself headlong into the water staying under for several minutes. Sam landed on the bank and eventually Dan stood up rinsing the last of the leaf litter, slime, and ashes from his cape. He was happy to find that while the slime was more stubborn than the ashes or detritus it was slowly rinsing off. Finished with his cape and gloves at least he wrapped them together in a bundle then tossed them to the river bank causing Sam to dodge the haphazard missile.

"Watch it!" Sam yelled and Dan ignored her stripping his shirt off in one fluid movement.

The strangest sensation went through the back of his mind almost like a tingling and Dan glanced up to see Sam staring at him wide eyed her face turning a becoming shade of pink.

A wicked grin slid on Dans face as he faced her fully the hand holding his shirt going to his hip as he reached his other bare hand out towards her.

"Do you like what you see?" he inquired making her face turn a bright red. "I wouldn't mind if you joined me."

"No thanks I don't do slime balls." Sam answered her eyes looking at everything but him.

"Oh don't worry I won't be slimy for very long." Dan replied

A slightly strangled sound came from Sams mouth and she spun around to face the jungle while snapping "I should have let that thing eat you!"

Dan laughed enjoying himself "You couldn't have Sammy dear because of this."

She turned instinctively, annoyed at his use of Sammy and she had no idea what he was talking about. As she did he flexed the arm that the silver band was attached to showing off his muscles a wide grin plastered across his face.

If possible she turned an even darker shade of red as he burst out laughing. A second later a decent sized rock cracked into the side of his head causing him to stumble in the water. The blow really had hurt but the look on her face was worth it as she stomped off into the bushes.

 _'I'm going to take a bath further up in the river and I swear if you peek I'll slice you up and feed you to the worms!'_ she raged though there was an undercurrent of embarrassment as well. Before he could reply what felt like a door slammed into place and he realized that she had figured out that they could indeed block one another.

Dan didn't care however and when he was done with his shirt he started rinsing his hair careful to avoid the new lump the rock had left, a grin trailing across his face as his hand brushed it. The rock had totally been worth it.


	30. Learning

**Snickers… that last chapter was so much fun but here is the newest chapter. I've actually been sucked into another fanfiction and have neglected this one a bit. I'm almost out of buffer….**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Almost a half hour later the met up along the river bank and walked in silence following the water. Dan could tell Sam was still steaming at his antics from earlier and he couldn't help the grin that kept making his lips twitch every so often. The only thing that broke the silence after two hours of walking or floating in Dans case was Sam's stomach.

"Hungry?" Dan asked and Sam glared at him.

"I can eat as we walk." Sam answered coldly as she kept moving forward while switching into ghost form.

She flew up into the trees several feet away and collected some fruit that grew off one of the branches. Dan followed her and after picking several of the oblong fruits for herself Sam held out one of them to Dan.

"No thanks." Dan said and Sam shrugged she had already explained that he would have to supplement his energy in other ways besides the crystal but if he wanted to be stubborn she wouldn't push.

They continued on in silence Sam chowing down on the fruit and saving the seeds to Dans amusement. Finally the silence between them got to Dan and he growled "Do you even know where you are going?"

"Yes I do. We are not going to get there before dark though so we will have to find someplace to sleep for the night." Sam answered

Eventually she stopped and looked at the forest around them. It was starting to get dark in the understory and Sam knew that it wasn't a good idea to sleep near the water. Without consulting Dan she flew up through the tops of the trees and was happy to see that there were several floating landmasses of varying sizes in the area. Dan joined her moments later looking as if he were ready to tear something apart and Sam realized that she was being petty and stupid. He had teased her and in a way she had deserved it for laughing when he had gotten eaten by the worm. Another part of her mind reminded her that it had been his fault for getting eaten in the first place but that thought simply made her sigh and wonder when she had started trying to keep score.

"Sorry Dan." Sam mumbled and the murderous light in his eyes went out. He crossed his arms as he looked away from her unable to keep the surprise from flitting across his face.

"Well it's about time." He muttered trying to sound aggrieved but Sam could tell that he was already relaxing the tension he hadn't even realized he'd been holding on to slowly leaching from his body.

"We should be able to stay on one of these islands for the night and I can set up a barrier to keep anything form bugging us as we sleep." Sam started only to be interrupted by Dan waving his hand.

"You go do what you need to do. I will find you by morning." He said and vanished into the trees below.

"Ok then…" Sam said to the empty air and flew towards the closest island. The island was small and had no plant life on it. There was a large outcrop of rocks to the one side and Sam erected her barrier there before setting down for the night. Before she went to sleep she reached out to Dan to tell him where she was and to ask what he was doing. He simply replied hunting and Sam decided she didn't want to know any details. She went to sleep as the last of the sunlight faded slipping into an unbroken dreamless sleep.

Dans fury had steadily been climbing the last hour before Sam had apologized. He didn't even know why her silence had infuriated him so badly. Even now after she had apologized he could feel the fury steadily growing again and Dan knew that he needed to go blow off some steam. He had no desire to sleep and no desire to be stuck in one place for several hours and not have the ability to come and go as he pleased. Besides they had a stalker that Sam hadn't noticed thankfully and Dan had already decided to teach this threat that he was the top of the food chain. Dan moved silently through the trees his red eyes and glowing aura being the only real thing that gave away his position. He could hear the beast moving closer to him as it tried to keep up and Dan grinned moving the slightest bit faster. He wanted to find a clearing or open space so he could see exactly what he was fighting and as he finally found the perfect spot Sam interrupted him simply telling him where she was. Somehow Dan knew he wouldn't have any trouble finding her so he simply replied with _'Thanks'_

 _'What are you doing?'_ she asked in the next moment surprising him. It surprised him even more that he could detect an undercurrent of concern.

The bushes before him shook as a beast that looked like a cross between a large cat and wolf creped from the bushes a low snarl coming from its fanged mouth.

Dan bared his own fangs and replied _'Hunting'_ and to his relief she didn't try to ask any more questions.

The two predators circled each other and Dan realized two things as they made a slow circuit of the clearing. The beast before him was young and his head only came up to the creatures shoulder. Dan let out a low guttural snarl. He could take this thing out with his wail with no problem but there wasn't any fun in that, no he wanted a hands on battle. The beast replied to his challenge with a roar as it leapt at him claws outstretched. Dan charged forward his own hands curled into claws as he let his fire core activate. The beasts claws missed him by millimeters and Dan went to his knees as sliding beneath the beasts belly. In the next instant he slammed his fist upwards where it met the beasts ribcage. A loud snapping sounded as the creature let out a tortured howl before being lifted off its feet and thrown into the trunks of some trees. The beast let loose a whining snarl as it scrambled to its feet its large bushy tail tucking down between its legs.

"Is that it?!" Dan demanded stepping forward to close the distance. The beast wanted nothing to do with him now having figured out that it was no match for him and it spat one last snarl in his general direction before darting into the trees.

"Oh no you don't." Dan growled and swiftly followed.

He didn't know how long he chased the beast firing off random ectoblasts at it hindquarters making the creature yelp and snarl. The thing was fast, though it was easier for him to move in the forest. He hardly noticed the changes in the environment as he followed the creature trying to egg it on into fighting him again. It's paws scrabbled for purchase as they entered a slightly more rocky terrain and the sudden difference made Dan pause a strange sense of foreboding running through him.

It darted into a cave and with a whine and in the next moment a loud snarl came from the caves mouth. A yelp then a whimper answered the snarl before silence reigned for several moments making Dan wonder if he should go into the cave but then the beast poked its head out. Its head was the size of him and its body silently flowed from the cave revealing that the creature that had attacked him was indeed very young. If Dan stood next to this thing the top of his head would just barely brush its underbelly. The beast scanned the clearing spotting Dan almost instantly. Its lips pulled back into a snarl that Dan echoed.

' _This thing is going to be fun to fight_ ' he thought taking a step forward

The beasts fur bristled as it dug its claws into the ground its whole body tensing. Dan moved forward a smirk on his face cracking his knuckles already envisioning his fist pummeling the beasts sides.

The beast growled and he could see just behind it two other uninjured pups sticking their curious heads out. The distraction was a mistake because in the next instant he was blasted backwards by a wave of sound so similar to his own wail it shocked him. He slammed through two trunks before the wave released him allowing him to drop to the ground a trunk landing across him. Dan blasted the trunk away and went to stand when a paw the size of a bed slammed him back down into the ground, extended claws slicing into the ground on either side of his neck. His body froze even as a growl the precursor to his own wail slid up his throat. The beast twisted its head and pinned him with a clear golden eye that glimmered with intelligence. He had made a mistake Dan realized. This thing was old, far older than him and had probably crossed over only when the worlds merged and it no longer had a choice in the matter. He could probably beat it but not without sustaining some serious injuries and a lot of destruction. He didn't really mind either but that surprise attack had made him remember what Sam had told him when she had ordered him to run at Clockworks tower. This world was indeed not the one he remembered.

"Get off and I will leave without killing you or your pups." Dan snarled his voice holding some of the power of his wail.

Its fur bristled waving slightly in the wake of his words. Its claws retracted though its gaze never left his. "Go"

Dan gaped not having expected the beast to actually _answer_. Its paw lifted enough for him to slide out from under it and it kept a close eye on him as he did. Getting to his feet he backed away slowly the beast watching him as he walked backwards into the forest behind him. The beast didn't move and Dan didn't think it probably moved until it could no longer sense his presence at all. Deciding he'd had enough fun for the night Dan made his way back to where Sam said she would be sleeping for the night. He found her blood blossom barrier and was impressed despite himself at the strength of her powers. Settling down just outside the barriers influence with a tired sigh Dan watched the night pass, for once missing the stars that had once filled the sky.


	31. New Surroundings

**Life is nuts. Thats all for now.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Dan was still in the same place as the sun rose and was fascinated to realize that while there was no specific orb in the sky there was a distinct difference as to where the light was coming from. It was almost as if the sky was permanently covered in thick blue-green clouds. As the perceived sun rose higher into the sky and light began to hit the Blood Blossom barrier he noted the slight change in Sams breathing pattern. Almost 15 minutes later he heard her shift and grumble something about mornings.

"Finally awake?" Dan asked and he heard a hiss of surprise escape the barrier within.

"I wasn't sure you would be back. How did your hunting go?" Sam replied

Thinking of how he was blasted through several trees and the enormous half creature that actually spoke Dan shrugged deciding that she didn't need to know everything. "It was fine I just wanted to discourage anything from trying to hunt us. Before you ask no I didn't kill anything either."

Slowly the blood blossoms retracted turning back into seeds leaving Sam eyeing him critically holding some fruit in her hands. Her gaze made him feel slightly self conscious and he growled slightly.

Her lips pursed "You're not injured are you? I can heal you if you are."

Her offer was genuine and he wondered if she would have offered if he told her everything that had happened. The few bruises he sustained on his back had already healed in the night and Dan smirked suddenly "No injuries but I can still take my shirt off if you ask nicely."

Sams face flushed pink a second before she pegged him in the forehead with a piece of fruit. The fruit hit him hard enough to burst in his face sending juice down his front. Dan caught the remainder of the fruit before it hit the ground instinctively licking the juice as it ran over his lips. It was actually pretty good and he bit into the squashed fruit in his hand as Sam snatched her bag from the ground. Cheeks still tinged with pink Sam stalked past him ignoring him as she transformed into her ghost half. Biting into the fruit again Dan followed her into the sky turning intangible for a brief moment to get the remainder of the juice off his face.

They flew for a long while in silence. Dan had long ago polished off the rest of the fruit though he kept the seeds. For a moment Dan considered tossing them but then realized that they would be a good way for him to get slightly back in Sams good graces. After all he knew she could hold a hell of a grudge.

"Sam." Dan said trying to get her attention. A beat of silence passed and for a moment Dan though she was going to blow him off. Annoyance tickled the back of his mind and a growl started to build in his throat but then she answered "What?" short sweet and to the point.

Dan sighed his memories of Sam flooding back to him from all the years he had known her. She was pissed and it was his fault.

 _'Time to play nice.'_ He thought to himself and Sam snorted coming to a halt as she turned back to face him. Concentrating on what he wanted to say Dan hadn't even realized he had reached out to her and hadn't realized she had stopped.

The result was him nearly slamming into her midair and she laughed as they steadied themselves. Dan felt a flush of heat run up the back of his neck and he thrust his hand out the slightly sticky seeds showing up easily in his palm.

"I saved them. The fruit was actually pretty good." Dan muttered as Sam gingerly took them from his hand.

"Would you like another?" Sam asked and although Dan didn't care he said yes trying for peace.

He would be lying if he said that he wasn't fascinated as he watched her grow a plant in her hand in under a minute. She picked two fruits and the plant shriveled into a brown dead vine before as she released it to the forest below.

"Why didn't you turn it back into a seed?" Dan asked curiously

Sam shrugged. "I do as the plants ask most of the time if I can. Some plants don't like being returned to seeds. They would rather die so I take my energy back and let them go."

"That makes sense I suppose." Dan said accepting a fruit from her outstretched hand.

He ate the fruit and they continued to travel onwards for several minutes until Sam spoke again.

"There is a city up ahead. I am pretty sure it's a ghost city so don't be a jerk to anyone."

Dan chuckled "So if it's a human city I can be a jerk?"

"No I just don't want to have to clean up any of your messes in the city and if you piss a bunch of ghosts off in the city they can forcefully expel you. I've seen it happen and its not pretty. Besides all we need is a portal and a phone then we will be on our way." Sam answered her voice hovering just above a growl.

"Fine, I guess this means I'm stuck with you then." Dan muttered

Sam ignored his comment and together they flew into the ghost city. Dam was stunned as he eyed the place and Sam kept having to retrace her steps to collect him as they made their way through the city. For one thing the city was enormous and stretched over several large floating islands. Buildings were built mostly vertical although Dan could see there were entire areas of the town that seemed to hang off the sides and even under the cities. Plants grew in every spot not occupied by buildings making the whole thing look like a giant overgrown tree with rocks sticking from it.

It was actually quite beautiful with multiple areas even having fountains and at one point he spied a small pool. Eventually they made it into the center of the city and once again Dan was left speechless as he gazed at what was before him. A large octogonal structure was erected in the center of the square. It looked almost exactly like his parents portal but it was far larger than the one in the basement had ever been.

"What?" Dan asked unable to think of what he really wanted to ask.

Sam glanced at him and said "I told you that portals now connect different places around the world right? When they find a large semi stable portal they use Fenton technology to fully stabilize it and keep it open. Even with the stabilization keeping them in place some portals only stay open for a few hours. I heard that there is one portal that takes you to a hidden city somewhere in the desert but it only stays open for a few minutes."

Dan shook his head. If she had mentioned it he hadn't been paying attention. "So we just go waltzing through?"

Sam shrugged. "Kind of. You have to know where you are and where you are going first which is what I am about to go figure out. I also need to call Tucker and see where they are to really get moving though."

"Then lets get to it." Dan said a grin on his face. The sooner they made it to Tuckers the sooner he could get the band off his wrist. He would have to ask Sam subtly for more info on the world before he really took off if he did because he wasn't sure if he wanted to leave her side just yet. Plus after the worm thing, the wolf creature and now this city, Dan was quickly realizing that as she had said he would have a far harder time taking over here than he had in his timeline. A wave of annoyance surged through him as some other dark strange emotion made itself known then he chuckled rather darkly thinking to himself that he couldn't wait to get started.


	32. Phone Calls

**Sorry to be a day late. Life is still nuts. Thats all for now.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Sam made her way nervously to a phone booth making sure that Dan stayed where she had left him. It had been far too long since she had been part of the regular world and it felt strange to be picking up a phone to make a simple call. Once she managed to navigate the menu she used her own private call line to try and contact Tucker. To be honest she wasn't even sure it would work so it was a total relief when on the holo screen Tuckers face showed up. Where ever he was it was daytime and the area around him was littered with greenery.

"Tucker?" Sam asked wondering if the call had frozen somehow.

"Sam?! Oh my god Sam its you!" Tucker cried "That dammed Undergrowth! We told him to contact us when it was ready. Are you ok how do you feel where are you?"

Sam laughed as he kept firing off questions and he stopped as she tried to catch her breath. "I'm sorry Tucker I don't think Undergrowth had much of a choice. We are in a city called Afores, and I was hoping to make my way to you and Valerie but I have no clue how to go about doing that. Much less where you guys are."

Tucker frowned "Afores? I haven't heard of that one but then I don't really do the outskirt cities these days. It been getting a bit more dangerous out there with Dark Parmius on the move again. Hang on a sec I can look it up."

The window blinked off for a brief moment and although she couldn't see him anymore she could still hear him and he was humming tunelessly.

"Some things never change." Sam muttered enduring the humming for over five minutes before he came back on.

"You are about two weeks worth of travel from us since we are staying in Krayodus right now. I can transfer all the data you need to your tablet if you still have it."

Sam nodded then pulled her backpack off to pull out a credit card sized screen. She turned it on and pulled the sides expanding it to the size of a paperback book.

"Man that thing is so old… I can upgrade it for you and stuff when you get here." Tucker said and Sam snorted.

"Just send the directions and you can bombard me with questions later. We might take a little longer traveling than two weeks though."

Tucker paused "Who's we?"

It was Sams turn to pause. She hadn't really thought of how to tell Tucker about Dan and she didn't think he would appreciate her just showing up with him at the house. "Uh well I'm not alone… traveling that is. I sort of ran into someone from our past when I was traveling and…"

Tucker frowned "You're hedging. You never hedge unless its something really bad."

Sam grimaced and decided to just jump right in "Its Dan Phantom Tucker. I don't know how but he is alive and…"

"WHAT?!" Tucker roared making Sam jump "He is ALIVE?! How is that possible?! Why is he traveling with you?" he demanded swiftly and Sam sighed.

"I don't know how he is alive but I found the thermos he was trapped in and the Goons blew it up releasing him. Then we kind of got hit with synergy bands and yeah he is stuck with me, or I am stuck with him. I'm not really sure which of us likes the situation least." Sam answered

Tucker gazed at her from the other side of the screen slack jawed and speechless. Slowly he shook his head "Only you Sam." He muttered to which Sam simply shrugged.

"Is he safe?" Tucker asked "I mean the last time we saw him he was kinda trying to kill us and stuff."

"Uh…" Sam managed thinking of the multiple clashing incidents they'd had since she had found him. "Not really safe but controllable?"

"I demand a play by play of what in the hell has happened to you but we will have to save it for later. I am already sending you the info on how to get to us and I will pick you guys up from the portal." Tucker said finally realizing he probably wasn't going to be able to get much more information out of her safely.

The screen in Sams hands blinked and a moment later a text file appeared. "I got it Tucker. Don't worry about Dan I have him mostly under control. Plus you have thermoses at your place right? If he goes nuts I will take him out and drag his sorry carcass to your place and you can suck up what's left."

Tucker snorted "Oh Valerie is going to love this… I will have to let her and the kids know. Listen I'm out in the field right now so I may not answer any other hails for a bit. I will meet you at the portal in two weeks time though. The portal only stays open from ten in the morning to six at night on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, or Fridays so the day you come through shoot me a message as to what time you make it through."

"Wait kids?! As in more than one?" Sam asked.

Tuckers face broke into a sappy grin. "Yeah her name is Ellie. She is four now and she will love you. Like Vivi shes also a halfa just so you know."

"I missed a lot didn't I?" Sam asked

"A few years but it's been pretty quiet. We can fully catch up later so travel safe." Tucker answered

"Will do Tucker." Sam said and for a long moment there was silence between them as the gazed at each other almost summing one another up.

"You look good Sam." Tucker said finally and Sam smiled.

"So do you Tuck. I will see you soon."

The panel clicked to black and Sam stood there for a minute just eyeing the blank screen. There were so many questions she had wanted to ask. Hell there were many questions that he had wanted to ask but both of them knew that it wasn't safe. She couldn't wait to see him though and soon she would be able to. Before leaving the privacy of the phone box Sam opened the text file to see what it entailed. It was encoded and Sam sighed wishing that just once they could send a normal text file to one another without worrying about prying eyes. She made her way back over to Dan who had a very mischievous look on his face as he looked out over the city.

"Thinking of how to take over the world again?" Sam asked making Dan jump.

He grinned at her "Yes."

Sam glared at him for a moment wondering if he were screwing with her then shook her head refusing to try and make him make sense. "Ok I talked to Tucker and I have where we need to go next. From what I see it shouldn't take longer than a week to get to them. I still have to decode some stuff so its going to take me a few minutes to get through this before I can really tell you anything."

"I thought you said it two weeks?" Dan asked and Sam gave him a sharp look as she sat on the bench next to where he stood.

"I can read lips." Dan said to answer the question he could practically feel burning through her. Pretending to ignore her he asked in his head _'Why the secrecy?'_

Seeming totally engrossed in the info on the tablet Dan watched Sams face scrunch as she answered. _'As soon as we made it into the city we have had a tail. Tucker and I are both paranoid and we wanted to make sure that if anyone tracking us did manage to get any information from our conversation it would be at least a week off.'_

Dan stiffened he had not noticed a tail and he resisted looking around, instead he settled back against the railing so he could watch all the people and ghosts interact with one another. Soon his attention was diverted back to Sam though.

 _'Why do we have a tail? What on earth have you guys been doing to warrant that kind of attention?'_ Dan asked his gaze finally picking out a seedy looking person that seemed way too interested in them.

Sam sighed ' _You mean besides leading the world in two inter-dimensional wars, stopping a tyrant in his tracks, and pissing off lord knows how many people while doing it?'_

Dan frowned _'Ok fine. Do you want me to take care of our tail?'_

Sam didn't answer instead she frowned at the screen before her and he wondered why. Just as he was starting to lose what little patience he had remaining she jumped to her feet.

"Crap we've got to move." ' _I will explain everything I can in a bit ok_?' Sam said as she started forward.

He was a step behind her. _'Fine, but you never answered me about the tail.'_ While out loud he said "We are going to where Tucker is I assume?"

Sam nodded then turned the text file in her hands. "We can catch two portals today and possible a third if this one city is more organized than the pictures." She glanced up at Dan seeing the strained look on his face.

"I will be on my best behavior and promise not to destroy anyone or anything." He snapped annoyed that she still hadn't answered him about the tail that was now slinking after them.

Sam snorted "Some of the places we will have to go through are a bit sketchy and to be honest you may have to break something by the end of this trip. Just don't kill anyone or anything."

Dan grinned "So if it attacks me I can do as I please as long as I don't kill it?" He clarified

Sam nodded her face turning grim "Yes, unless I say so differently. Try not to get separated from me either ok?" She asked as they made their way to the front of the portal.

For a moment Dan wondered if that meant he could take care of the tail but her voice in his head gave him his long awaited answer.

 _'We will let him follow for a bit and hopefully we will be able to find out who he is reporting into. He isn't very good at his job so he won't know much.'_

Dan sighed but understood why Sam was doing it this way. He was just glad she had given him permission to do as he pleased. A kind of glee surged through him at the prospect of a good fight. His lips lifted in a smile exposing his fangs "I will do my best."

"Then lets do this." She muttered and together they stepped through the portal.


	33. Portal Lag

**Thank you so for the review Cindy M 19 and crazyaboutto! I really appreciate the kind words. I've kinda gotten out of the habit of sitting down and writing this story though I have it mapped out for quite a bit still. I'm working on getting my buffer back but I keep getting distracted… As I like to say SHINY PIECE OF DUST!**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

It took four days for them to reach the final portal that would transfer them to Tuckers hometown and by the time they reached it Sam felt like a frazzled mess. Dan on the other hand was positively gleeful. He had gotten into several fights, torn an entire building apart, and had the best time ever intimidating the crap out of anyone who strayed too close to them. They had ditched the first tail less than an hour into their journey but had discovered a second tail picking up on their scent in a small backwater town where everyone knew everyone else. The backwater town had been Dans idea and turning the tables on the poor tail they were able to track them to a hideout in the middle of nowhere. Realizing they needed more info on just who this tail was working for they had gone in to find several Goons accepting info on Sam. Dan had demolished the place and shredded the Goons down to their cores, effectively petrifying anyone else out of attempting to follow them. For the most part the rest of the trip had passed peacefully other than the normal travel frazzles. Sam had gotten Dan a proper travel cloak and he had worn it because he had a problem. Dan drew attention. For the most part it wasn't on purpose but he was a six foot ghost with flame like hair. Not to mention he had the Phantom symbol emblazoned on his chest and he wore power like a cloak. Sam had asked if he would like a different change of clothes or at least ones without the Phantom symbol on it. Dan had practically snarled "No" and to his surprise she didn't try and press him into anything different. He hadn't really wanted the travel cloak either but there had been a few times where he knew anonymity was needed and that at least a travel cloak could provide. They had arrived at their second to last destination a while ago and not for the first time since they arrived at the yet to open portal Sam tugged at his cloak.

"Can you please it down?" she demanded as her other hand tapped out a rhythm on the data pad in her lap.

Dan hardly glanced at her. She had been in an extra cranky mood since last night and he had yet to figure out why. He wasn't sure why he cared but he told himself that if she were cranky it would only be a matter of time before she turned that crankiness on him.

"Still no Tucker?" he asked instead and Sam glanced at the blank data pad before her.

"No." she sighed "He did say he would be out of contact but I messaged him that we would be coming through so even if her were really busy he will almost always send a one word reply."

"So you think something has happened?" Dan asked curiously. He would never admit it but he was curious to see Tucker and Valerie again. In his world Tucker had never survived to adulthood while Valerie had been a fighter and the only person able to stand a remote chance against him in a stacked battle. He wondered how this worlds Valerie and Tucker would be different.

"I don't know. We will be finding out in about an hour though." Sam answered

Dans face scrunched slightly "I thought the portal opened in five minutes."

Sam nodded "It does but all this portal jumping has given me portal lag and I need to get some real food in my system. Then if Tucker doesn't show we will have to find our way to his house and I don't know how long that will take."

Dan frowned but nodded at her words then watched in barely suppressed awe as the portal came to life before them. It was fascinating to watch. The space in between the steel hexagon wavered as if it were in a heat wave. Then the space twisted on itself a tiny green spark appearing at its heart before spiraling out to the edges of the steel. Within moments the space was suffused with spiraling green light and people began to appear out of it on one side as others entered from the other.

"Last portal." Sam sighed as she stood. "Lets get this over with."

They passed through the green light with no trouble and Dan could tell that Sam was disappointed when Tucker wasn't waiting for them on the other side. Never one to dwell Sam tried again to message him as she grabbed some food from a veggie vendor's stall. Dan gave in to his own hunger and ate a turkey leg while they sat in the shade of a massive tree. After they finished and Sam took an unexpected nap they began their final leg of their journey. Sam typed in the address Tucker had given Sam and her little screen thing had led them on a long journey to the outskirts of the city. The home before them was medium sized and Sam chuckled at the sight of a pink bike with tricycle wheels laying haphazardly in the grass. Other toys littered the lawn and Dan eyed them with distaste.

"What do they run a daycare or something?" Dan asked and Sam froze realizing that she hadn't yet told him about Valerie and Tuckers kids.

"Uh I kinda forgot to mention this before but Tucker and Valerie have kids Dan." Sam answered watching his face to gage his reaction.

He blinked then his jaw dropped. "Kids? As in more than one?"

Sam snorted "Yes they have two little girls and they are both under 13 so please don't scare them or do anything crazy around them."

Dan had gone totally still not a single emotion showing on his face and felling suddenly concerned by his lack of reaction she waved a hand in front of his face.

"Dan? Are you not ok with kids or something?" Sam asked and Dan blinked

"Children are fine. I couldn't hurt them if I wanted to." He answered and a frown creased Sam's features.

"Ok…" Sam said wondering what in the hell Dan had meant by saying he couldn't hurt them if he wanted to.

"Shall we knock?" Dan asked pointing at the house his face still showing nothing.

"Uh yeah…" Sam answered and with Dan following close behind they approached the scuffed door and Sam rang the doorbell.

"Vivi get the door please!" an adult womans voice called as a younger screeched "Is it daddy? Is it Daddy?"

The door flew open and a tousled head appeared around the door as the yelled into the house "No Goon bait Daddy wouldn't ring the doorbell." Then she looked up and Sam felt Dan stiffen beside her.

Vivis jaw dropped "Aunt Sam?" she whispered and Sam cracked a grin.

"Hey Vivi, you have grown since I saw you last." Sam replied

"Sam!" Vivi shrieked and threw herself into Sams arms

* * *

 **Its kinda short... Sorry... But at least I had something!**


	34. Children

**Dear lord I am not allowed to write past midnight anymore. When I do I stop making sense and it starts to read like word vomit… Don't worry Cindy M 19 your question as to why Dan is the way he is with kids will becoming… eventually… Hehe we have to make it through some other stuff first but we will get there fairly soon. Also children are fun to write.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

Sam held Vivi tight and soothed the girl as she started to sob. Since she was still, Dan was able to finally get a good look at her. Vivi was the spitting image of Valerie from her hair to her eyes which were a brighter teal shade than either of her parents. She stood almost chest high on Sam and her black hair was braided down past her shoulders. She wore a yellow dress with white leggings and was barefoot her toenails painted a bright pink color. A few moments later as if drawn by the sound of her sisters sobs a tiny second child peeked around the doorway. Her face was a better mix of her parents though her eyes were the same over bright color her sisters were. Her hair was far curlier than her sisters and she wore it in two pom poms on either side of her head. She wore a pink onsie that had moons, stars, and circles on them and in her arms was a teddy bear. She gazed at Vivi in confusion and when she saw Dan her eyes widened.

Turning she yelled "Mommy Vivi is hugging a stranger!"

Vivi twisted in Sams arms "She isn't a stranger you nincompoop!"

The second child's face pinched "Mommy Vivis calling me names!"

"I am not you tattle tale!" Vivi snapped and wiggling out of Sam's arms she ran back into the house after her sister who shrieked and darted away the moment her foot crossed the threshold.

Sam glanced up at Dan who seemed to be in a state of shock. "They look just like them." He said and Sam had to snicker.

"Well yeah they are their children after all. Shall we go in?" She asked and with Dan close behind followed the sounds of shrieking kids into the home.

"Vivi stop teasing your sister. Who was at the door?" Valerie asked as Sam walked into the living room.

Vivi pointed and Valerie looked up. "Oh my god… Sam?" she asked then she was flying forward and wrapping her arms so tight around her Sam grunted in pain.

"Hey…Valerie…cant ….breathe…" Sam managed and Valerie jerked back looked her over for a brief second then hugged her again this time a little more gently.

"We were so worried and that dam Undergrowth. I'm so going to take a weed whacker to him next time I see him! He was supposed to let us know when he was going to return your memories!" Valerie said pulling Sam towards the couch.

Sam followed with a chuckle. "Tucker practically said the same thing when I talked to him."

Valerie paused and as she opened her mouth to speak a small voice asked "Are you Goon bait too?"

Valerie and Sams head whipped around to see the smallest girl Ellie standing in the hallway clutching a bear and looking way up at something.

"Ellie who are you talking to?" Valerie asked

"Uh Valerie I have to tell you something." Sam managed watching as Ellie reached up offering a hand to Dan who to her surprise took it.

Valeries breath sucked in as she watched her four year old daughter lead in a six foot tall man in a traveling cloak, who literally screamed danger. Releasing the child's hand Dan slid the cloak off making Valeries jaw drop.

"Hello Valerie. You look stunning I must say. Long hair has always suited you so much better than that awful buzz cut." Dan said

Valeries gaze cut between Sam and Dan then back again. "We. Need. To. Talk." Valerie snapped and drug Sam forward heading for the kitchen. "Kids stay in here."

Sam shot _'Behave and don't bother the kids.'_ to Dan as she followed Valerie into the kitchen.

Dan honestly didn't know what to do. He wasn't messing with Sam when he had told her he couldn't hurt children. Not that he would hurt these two girls anyways but that was besides the point. Usually though he avoided children because he didn't know how to act around them. He could go invisible and intangible so that the children couldn't see him but there was something about the smaller girl that captured his attention. She was sweet, innocent, and she didn't fear him in the slightest which was a nice change because most kids tended to avoid him. The older girl Vivi stayed far away from him which in his mind was a smart move. It would seem that she at least could sense the danger he radiated. Her younger sister Ellie was either totally oblivious or she didn't care. She walked right up to him and tugged on his hand.

"You're really tall." She said craning her neck to look up at him. "You can sit if you like!"

Not saying anything Dan sat down on the floor on his traveling cloak and she moved around him her curious little eyes bright with mischief. Dan ignored her until she climbed onto a footstool and tumbled forward landing on his back and head. Dan went totally stiff as she giggled and ran her tiny hands through his hair.

"Its warm!" She cried and flopped fully forward to rest on top of his head.

Vivi stomped her foot. "Get off him Goon bait before I go tell mom!"

"But he's soooo warm like a giant teddy bear!" Ellie giggled again her teddy bear flopping against Dans face.

Dan closed his eyes and counted to three so his voice didn't snarl when he spoke. "I am not a Jungle Jim little one." He said

Ellie scooted farther up her knees pressing into his shoulders so she could fully lean over his head and her bright eyes met his as she gazed at him upside down. Her smile was so big so bright it made his heart ache over a lost child he once knew. Then suddenly she sneezed. A bright flash of light swiftly expanded and a second Ellie fell into his lap. This one had white hair and silver eyes while her onesie stayed its normal colors to his surprise.

Vivis jaw dropped. "I'm telling mom you are using your powers!" she cried and the Ellie on his lap sped off him in an instant.

"Nuh uh!" Ellie cried zooming around her sister so she couldn't leave the room.

"Ugh get out of the way!" Vivi yelled stomping her foot and accidently transformed. Like Ellie her hair went white and her eyes a bright silver.

"Haha!" Ellie taunted and Vivi squealed in rage as she leapt into the air to try and catch her sister. The Ellie on Dans head sneezed again and another duplicate appeared though they seemed to be far more interested in Das cape than the aerial battle going on.

 _'Sam help'_ Dan called his inner voice carrying so many emotions he wasn't even sure what he was feeling. Dan caught the girl by the back of her pajamas before she crawled behind him and lifted her up so she dangled in his one hand. She giggled her hands and feet waving wildly in the air before she started making airplane noises the bear she was holding swooshing about. Then the dam child sneezed AGAIN and this duplicate landed smack in his lap as Valerie and Sam arrived back on the scene. Valeries jaw dropped and Sam literally fell over laughing as Vivi yelled "GOTCHA!" her hands finally managing to take hold of her sisters ankle.

"Now take back your copies!" Vivi snapped as she cracked a green colored fist down onto her sisters head.

All the duplicates on Dan instantly vanished leaving a single bear in his lap and Ellie let out a wail as a flash of green knocked her sister back.

"GIRLS!" Valerie yelled and for some strange reason Ellie still wailing plummeted from the air to plow straight into Dans chest knocking him flat on his back. Even as his arms wrapped around the child his eyes met Sams and he sent a mental _'Please kill me now'_

"You're already dead." Sam retorted and cracked up all over again.

* * *

 **Poor Dan...**


	35. Missing

**Sorry about not updating yesterday. Talk about being busy…**

 **In which Dan gets a talking to from an unexpected source.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

"Girls to your rooms NOW!" Valerie yelled

"She started it!" Vivi yelled as she sank to the floor

"Nuhuh!" Ellie replied from Dans chest and seeing her moms furious look she squeaked and wiggled out of Dans arms running for the wall which she phased through.

"What have I said about phasing through the walls!" Valerie yelled and a flash of light left a human Vivi standing alone in the living room.

"I'll go catch her." Vivi said and left the room with a sigh.

Valerie stared after her then looked to Sam who was still chuckling then to Dan who was still somewhat stunned on her floor and walked over to the couch before throwing herself onto it with a groan. "Gods this is like that time we agreed to babysit those twin terror cousins of mine."

Sam laughed even harder "Yeah but at least we could give them back at the end of the day! These two are yours!"

Valerie groaned again and waited until Sam composed herself then patted the couch next to her.

"So before my children made a ruckus you were about to explain some things." Valerie said looking at Dan who was still laying on the floor unmoving one hand clenched around her daughters teddy bear.

Sam sighed and moved to the couch. "Like I said before part of it is Dans story to tell not mine. I'll tell you how I got to you guys but first I need to know. Where is Tucker?"

Valerie sat up clenching her hands together. "I don't know Sam. He just vanished five days ago. From what you have told me so far you were the last one to make contact with him. We just recently moved into this area so I cant leave the kids and I cant call in help from the parents since we are technically supposed to be in hiding."

"Tuckers missing?!" Sam cried and Valerie glared at her

"Yes that's what I just said. He isn't answering any kind of summons and I only have a last location because he texted me saying he had a surprise for me when he got home that night which I'm guessing was the news you were coming."

Dan finally sat up "We need to find him. Let us have his last know position and I'm sure we can track him down."

Valerie eyed him strangely. "I know why Sam wants my husband but why do you?"

Dan raised his arm showing off the synergy band shackled to his arm. Valeries eyes widened and she glanced to Sam who held up her arm so she could see the band too.

"I-I see." Valerie said. "I will give you guys his last location but I don't know how much it will help. For tonight you should stay here and get some rest."

"Oh yes please." Sam murmured "I am in desperate need of a shower."

Valerie laughed and stood "Come on I have a spare bedroom for you Sam but unless you want to share a room…" she glanced at Dan who literally growled making the hair stand up on the back of her neck.

"I don't need sleep." He snarled sitting up a little "I will find ways to keep myself occupied."

Valeries hand twitched as if she had a weapon already in it ready to aim at Dans head and Sam sighed. "Don't worry he is just grumpy that Tucker isn't here." She said and Dan flopped back flat on the floor.

Valerie and Sam left the room and Dan could hear her asking Sam "Spill Sam who is he and why does he look like Danny?"

Dan was annoyed that Tucker wasn't there. He wanted to get the dammed band off so he could get away from everything that reminded him of his past and yet once that did happen Dan wasn't sure what he was going to do. It was the stupidest thing but his core ached to be around Sam and yet he was drawn to her. He had noticed it when they were traveling through the portals. Each time they passed through one he could feel the energy tugging at his core and only the violence he had gotten to indulge in had caused the sensation to abate. Clearly he was still being reformed and his core didn't like it one bit which only proved his sentiment that he was evil all the way through not matter how dusty that side of him seemed to be at the moment. He growled again and sending a brief message to Sam telling her not to wait up for him he went intangible. Dan decided to search for something to destroy.

Hours later when darkness had closed its ranks Dan finally returned. The children were in their rooms and beds respectively while Sam and Valerie sat at the table chatting. He had found a portal that spit him out in a mountainous region and he had just spent the last few hours leveling boulders the size of houses to rubble. With the excess energy burnt off he actually felt tired and calmer.

 _'Are you better now?'_ Sam asked and the conversation in the kitchen paused

Dan sighed and although he tried to feel annoyed he just couldn't muster the emotion. He walked into the kitchen and stood directly behind Sam who was in a pair of adorable bat pajamas. The sight caused his lips to twitch and Sam leveled a glare at him upside down which did nothing to curb his amusement.

"Not a word." Sam said

A larger twitch lifted Dan lips "You must be batty if you think I would say a single thing to upset you."

Sam growled and Valerie snorted. "Now that Dan is back may I please have some answers?"

"You didn't tell her?" Dan asked staring at Sam who shrugged her shoulders her hair hiding her face now that she wasn't looking up at him any longer.

"As I said before its not my story to tell." Sam answered

Dan looked up at Valerie who had a very studious gaze. The last time he had seen her in his world at this age he had been fighting her and on the verge of killing her. His worlds Valerie had been a hard case, a fighter that was willing to sacrifice everything to keep the last of working society alive and well. This Valerie was softer but he could still sense that hardness below the surface. Sam had told him some of the things they had seen and fought so he knew she wasn't going to be a push over. Considering she also had children now this worlds Valerie might even be more dangerous than the one he used to know. He waved a hand at her giving her permission to ask away.

"I'm not even sure who exactly you are." Valerie said

Dan frowned it wasn't really a question and yet it asked a lot all in one go. The real question was how much did he want to tell them. Sam only knew what he had told her so far and what she had seen all those years ago when she had traveled to his future. She didn't hate him for it either which was surprising. Valerie on the other hand…

"I am Danny from a different future." He said watching her expression carefully.

Horror, shock, disbelief, and sorrow all crossed her face in rapid succession but she remained silent and he continued.

"In my future Sam, Tucker and my whole family were killed in an accident caused by a ghost attack and..."

"Wait a ghost attack?" Sam demanded breaking him off midsentence.

Dan nodded "It was the ghost attack that caused the explosion. As for cheating on that stupid test… I actually didn't. However that test was the reason, the catalyst for everything else happening. The events of your future as well as the showdown between Danny and I were very different from the one I came from. It was clockworks meddling that changed it."

Valerie blinked "I'm still confused and why didn't anyone tell me about this? Tucker never mentioned Dan ever."

Dan snorted "Knowing my younger self he probably didn't want anyone to know that in a future world he destroyed both the human world and the ghost zone. It would seem that Sam and Tucker followed his wishes and kept me a secret while I was locked away in Clockworks tower in that dammed thermos."

Valerie leveled a glare in Sams direction. "It still should have been mentioned in passing at least though."

Dan outright laughed this time. "What did you want them to say Valerie? Hey we have an evil, alternate world, adult, full ghost version of Danny locked up in Clockworks tower. He destroyed his entire world but don't worry everything will be fine?"

"You're not evil. Definitely far angrier than Danny ever was but not evil." Valerie answered

"That's what everyone seems to say." Dan snarled his annoyance rapidly rising

"Then maybe you should listen." Valerie snapped "Stop acting like a petulant child who's favorite toy has been taken away and listen to what's going on around you."

"I shouldn't exist!" Dan roared suddenly his annoyance and anger flaring in one fell swoop. Sam twisted in her chair and grabbed his arm anchoring him before his rage could sweep him away.

Valeries eyes widened at his outburst but she hadn't fled, hadn't pulled a weapon on him. Slowly she stood "You do exist though. Danny isn't here anymore and you are. Everyone on team Phantom has been given second chances and for whatever reason you have been given the same opportunity. So instead of being so dam angry about it find out why and decide to live."

Dans shoulders slumped and Sam glanced between him and Valerie looking somewhat surprised. Pulling his arm out of Sam's grip he took a step back. "I'm a full ghost Valerie, made up of Vlad's ghost half and Danny's ghost half. I doubt there is a second chance large enough for me to have."

His words froze Valerie in place and she glanced at Sam who nodded. "Oh, that's why Danny was so pissed at Vlad." She whispered and moved around the table until she was standing right in front of Dan. "Our mistakes can break us or make us better. I tried to kill Danny more times than I wish to remember and yet he still gave me a second chance. I don't know your past and I won't pretend that it doesn't freak me out to see you standing here. However, that symbol on your chest makes you one of Team Phantom. Deal with it. If you try to pull any crap we will put you down with a smile so figure out whatever it is that you really want."

Her words shook him, really shook him and he barely registered her saying goodnight to Sam before walking out of the kitchen and turning off the lights as she did so. Sam stood and placed a hand on his shoulder and when he didn't respond she sighed.

 _'Do you need to talk?'_ she asked mentally, unsure he would hear anything she said out loud

It took a moment but eventually Dan answered "You are all idiots. I'll be on the couch if you need me."

Pulling his cape off Dan chose the larger couch and dropped to the soft cushions stuffing his cape behind his head as he did so. Valerie's words spun inside his head as he closed his eyes and without realizing it he fell asleep.


	36. Recurring Dreams

**So for the sake of my sanity and you poor readers out there anytime Dan has flash backs he is going to be referred to as Dan in them. I tried it a different way first and it was a mess to put it mildly.**

 **Disclaimer for this chapter… To be honest Danny was basically manipulated into trying to cheat on the CAT in the show. Yes in the end it was his decision but there was a lot of manipulation to get him there in the first place and I think Dan was screwed over in the same fashion. So this is my take on how it went down in Dan's timeline.**

 **AH yes Cindy M 19 Jazz will be part of the story eventually. Not quite yet though. As for Valerie I think Dan needed to hear it from someone who caused a bunch of trouble and damage willingly for the sake of revenge. That and the fact that they were trying to kill each other in his timeline. I feel it would have more effect.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

He walked in darkness as a voice called to him. "So you want to be a good guy again huh?"

Dan turned to see Plasmius in all his vampire-esque regalia standing before him.

"Ugh, you again. Why haven't you disappeared after all these years?"

Plasmius laughed manically "I'm a part of you boy perhaps you need to remember how you got yourself into this mess to start with."

Dan didn't have the chance to answer before a pink blast of energy struck him sending him into the light where he promptly fell out of bed.

An alarm clock blared somewhere and scrambling to his feet he turned it off before racing around his room collecting and throwing on his usual ensemble. Glancing in the mirror as he ran out the door Dan recognized his younger self jolting him into the realization that he was dreaming. He was dreaming and he couldn't wake up as his human self ran out the door yelling to his parents to have a good day.

His friends waited for him outside the door and they smiled at him. "Hey Dan!" they both called and he grinned in return. "Hey guys ready for the big test?" he asked

It was the day of the CAT test his final day with his two best friends. The countdown to him becoming a monster had begun and all he could do was watch it happen… again.

Sam eyed him as Tucker rolled his eyes. "You did return the answers without peeking right?" she demanded as they started to walk to school.

Dan laughed "Yes mother I did. We talked about this remember?"

Sam shrugged "I know I just wanted to make sure it stuck. You seemed really freaked about this stupid test and then you accidently got a hold of that answer sheet and we were really worried about you."

"Yeah man especially with all these Ghost attacks lately. Have you even had a chance to study? Without us I mean?" Tucker asked.

For the past few weeks mutant ghosts had been showing up randomly and attacking. Tucker and Sam had been helping him study in between battles and even during them since most of the mutants were not that hard to beat.

"Kinda, I mean at this point its like you guys said. Its just a test and…" A cold chill worked its way up his throat and a blue mist exited. "Oh no." Dan muttered then claws slashed into his bag tearing it wide open scattering his two books and a few papers to the wind.

"Dan!" Sam and Tucker cried as he slammed a fist into the freaky half bird half something creature. Slipping from his back pack he darted into an alley and transformed swiftly taking the creature out. Like all the others it dissolved into a pile of goop the moment it was defeated. Sam and Tucker waited for him the remains of his bag and his stuff in hand. Without a word he flew them the rest of the way to school and met them in class seconds before the bell went off. Lancer wasn't happy as he passed out the test of course but Dan kinda figured at this point he was never happy. At least he was a decent person and seemed to care about his job. The test time was actually quiet although about halfway in his ghost sense went off. Unable to just get up and leave he sat tensely for several minutes waiting for the screams to start. When they didn't Dan had returned to his test rushing through several questions before he forced himself to slow down once more. He finished, actually finished the test before time was up and bored in those few minutes sketched a cartoonish astronaut on the backside of the scantron test in the scratch work area. Finally the bell rang and they all moved to the front of the class to turn in their papers. As he handed his paper in Dans ghost sense went off again and this time was welcomed by screams that came from the hallway. Dan sighed and ran into the hallway with several other students to find three rabbit mutant animals the size of bears eating the lockers. Ducking into a locker himself he put his headset into his ear then transformed and dove head first into battle. The battle was taking longer than normal due to the fact that there were three extra large ghost creatures. Finally he caught a breakthrough and skidding behind the three he sent out a massive ectoblast attack. The first one he dealt with was simply blasted to smithereens as the other two dodged. He was grappling with the second when his headset rang. Blasting the snarling fanged beast through the wall he hit the button on the side to answer only to have the third bunny beast land on him.

"So I got C for answer 17 what did you get?" Tucker asked

"C." Dan gasped and managing to get one arm free sent an ectoblast straight through the beast causing it to dissolve into a pile of goop right on him.

"You guys are not supposed to discuss the test. Also the answer for 17 was B." Sam said joining in their conversation.

"No way!" Dan and Tucker cried as Dan stood to climb out of the ectplasmic pile of goo.

"Are you ok Dan?" Sam asked "Tucker and I got stuck in the crowd so we are outside now."

Looking around Dan didn't see the third bunny bear thing so he ducked into a classroom and changed back. "I don't see the third mutant so I'm heading your way." Dan said walking back out into the hall.

He was about halfway down the hall when an angry voice rang out. "Mr Fenton!"

Dan spun around arms raising defensively then recognized a very angry looking Lancer stomping towards him holding his shredded backpack as well as a packet of paper.

"Yes sir?" Dan asked wondering what in the world was going on.

"I discovered this in your bag! How dare you steal the answer sheet and cheat!" Lancer yelled dropping his bag to the floor by accident.

Dan froze as his friends yelled "What?!" in his ear.

"That's impossible…" Dan murmured as Lancer ignoring his bag closed the gap between them.

Lancer scoffed "What you didn't think you would get caught?"

"No you don't understand! A ghost shredded my bag this morning and Sam and Tucker helped me pick my stuff up. Those papers were not there before I walked into class!" Dan yelled

Lancer sighed going from angry to disappointment so fast Dan froze. "I've already scanned you test Dan. It's a perfect score."

His jaw dropped "Impossible…" He whispered again as Lancer pulled a scantron from under the packet.

Without thinking he snatched the sheet from Lancers hand scanning it barely hearing Lancer as he said "I've already called your parents and I will be meeting them in a little over n hour at the Nasty Burger. You will be present and we will discuss the repercussions of your foolishness."

Dan scanned the test before him and his eyes landed on 17. The bubble filled in was B and yet Dan knew he had filled in C. The whole scantron was fill in the bubble even for your name and his eyes flashed up to the information part and saw his name bubbled in. He flipped it over looking for the scratch work section and with a chill saw it was blank.

"This isn't mine. I drew an astronaut in the scratch work section and I answered C for 17. This isn't mine." Dan said his voice raising.

Lancer frowned at him. "This isn't the time Dan. You can defend your actions later today when I talk to your parents." With that being said he reclaimed the sheet and stalked away leaving a stunned Dan behind.

Moments later Sam and Tucker arrived at his sides "Dude what's going on?" Tucker asked

Dan shook his head "I don't know… Your guys picked up my stuff this morning. Those papers were not in there."

"No those papers were not in there, besides what kind of idiot brings the answer sheet with them into the test?" Sam asked

"Apparently me… Oh man how do I explain this to my parents?" Dan asked looking frantic. Suddenly his headset started ringing and without thinking he answered it. "Its Dan."

"Hey little bro Mom and Dad seem really upset because of a phone call from Lancer and they won't tell me what's going on. Is everything alright?" Jazz asked

"Not really I've just found out that I've been framed for cheating on the CAT and I have no idea how to fix it or even defend myself." Dan answered

"What?!" Jazz screeched and Dan winced than gave her the run down.

Jazz sighed. "I'll buy you as much time as I can. I know you are not dumb enough to bring the answer sheet into the test with you."

"Thank you!" Dan sighed and then paused "Wait was that a complement?"

Jazz chuckled "Listen your test paper has to be in the school unless it grew legs and walked off. Find your test and then Lancer will have to sit down and listen. At worst you will have to take the make up test in a few weeks."

Dan sighed already feeling better. "Thanks Jazz we will start looking now."

The line clicked off and Dan faced his two friends. "We have got to find my test. It has an astronaut drawn in the scratch work area. Hopefully whoever or whatever took it didn't keep it with them."

They split up to cover more ground starting in the classroom where they took the test and from there checked nearby rooms the grading room and once Lancer left the room his office. Sam found it in a spare classroom crumpled into a ball at the very bottom of a trash can. Dan could have kissed her and very nearly did but his ghost sense went off alerting him to danger yet again. Glancing at his watch Dan groaned. They had been searching for a while and had run over an hour nearly 20 minutes ago. A quick glance at his messages showed missed calls from his parents and Jazz which never boded well for him.

"You go take care of the ghost Dan. Sam and I will get this test to the Nasty Burger. We will tell them that you are catching up." Tucker said and grabbing Sams arm they ran from the building. Dan transformed and once he flew outside ran into the largest mutant thing he had seen so far. It was almost the size of a building and the thing appeared to be a compilation of a whole bunch of mutant animals all in one. Dan went to work on it blasting whatever he could and after 15 of intense fighting the thing was weak enough to shove in the thermos. After finding a quick hiding place and changing back Dan ran as fast as his legs could carry him. When he could see the Nasty Burger building his headset rang yet again.

"Where are you?" Sams voice asked.

He could see them through the diners window. His parents Jazz Tucker and Lancer all sat at a booth. Lancer was jabbing a finger down at the table and Tucker was clearly defending Dan as he glared at Lancer. Sam was several feet away on the phone.

"Im coming up to the building now." Dan answered his breath puffing out in small gasps as he watched her turn towards the window. She smiled as Dan said. "I can see you guys at the booth. I will…"

The building before him turned into an inferno and the concussive blast knocked him instantly unconscious.


	37. Recurring Nightmare

**Well now here we are. The second half to Dans unfortunate timeline. I feel nothing but pity for the poor guys but even still everyone shall die.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

It was a tragic accident. That's what everyone kept repeating as Dan stumbled through the next two weeks of his life in a daze. He had awoken in the hospital and although he had been burned, hit by debris, and had a concussion he'd had far worse fighting ghosts. His injuries didn't slow him in the slightest and he immediately demanded to know what happened. No one would tell him anything and even though Dan had been badly injured in their minds he was desperately trying to leave. Frantic the doctors had been forced to try sedating him which honestly hadn't worked so well since his makeup was no longer fully human. Thankfully before he decided to turn to violence Vlad showed up and threw everyone out. Dan had expected sarcasm, smugness, anything but the sad patient we need to talk look that adults get when something bad happens. The look had frozen him to the spot all the adrenaline and fury snuffing out in an instant.

"They are dead Dan." Vlad said and those four little words had shattered his world.

Dan hadn't had many choices. His aunt didn't want him and he was too young to live on his own. When Vlad offered his home Dan found he hadn't even cared that he was literally going to be living with his arch nemesis. He didn't go back to school. He couldn't face anyone especially not after the funerals. He felt hollow and spent his days wandering around Vlad's ridiculously huge mansion or grounds. He would wander until exhaustion hit him and would sleep where ever he was at that moment. Once after falling asleep under a tree a boot nudged him awake and he found the barrel of a gun pointed directly between the eyes. Usually he would go ghost and blast whatever fool was stupid enough to point a weapon at him but that was before he had lost everything. Now he simply looked up into Skulkers eyes and sighed.

"Please, go ahead. I don't want to do this anymore." Dan muttered and Skulker flinched at the complete monotone nature of his voice.

Dans eyes closed and he fell back asleep uncaring whether he woke up at all. To his disappointment he did awake in the nice soft bed Vlad had gotten him. He sat up and to his surprise Vlad sat at the end of the bed an odd look in his eyes.

"Dan, I know that you are hurting from your loss. As you know I-I loved your mother and cared about your sister. However you need to start getting a grip boy. Since arriving here you haven't gone ghost once…"

"I'm never going ghost again." Dan snarled the first flicker of any kind of emotion finally showing itself.

Vlad flinched. "Very well but all you do is wander around until you collapse from exhaustion. That cannot continue."

Dan glared up at him that small spark of rage growing. "Its not like I have anything else to do! Everything hurts and I just want it to stop!"

To his surprise Vlad hugged Dan to him and whispered "If that's all you want I may be able to help."

The rage was snuffed out leaving a hollow feeling worse than before. "How?" he asked his voice small and breaking.

Due to the fact his face was pressed into Vlads chest in comfort he missed the look of triumph that crossed Vlads face at his words. Two days later he stood in the lab watching Vlad set up the contraption that was going to help him. Vlad had been concerned about his ghost half taking over. Because Dan had lost his will to live Vlad feared his ghost half was starting to take over and that's why Dan felt so numb all the time. He had done some tests and none of them had come back good apparently. So now he was in the lab a strange sense of dread filling him. Vlad had said that he could remove his ghost half and once that was done the pain would stop. Dan was unsure if he was telling the truth but at this point he honestly couldn't remember why he should care. His head felt fuzzy his mind lost and he hadn't eaten anything that day yet but Vlad had given him something to drink earlier. Now he just felt tired again and Vlad helped him lay down on a stretcher where he drifted off for what felt like only a brief moment. His eyes fluttered the strange numbing sensation fading as his consciousness rose again. He was strapped to a metal stretcher a mask fitted tight over his face. A slight feeling of panic and distrust flitted through his tired mind as he looked around and spotted Vlad in what looked like operation scrubs. He was upright on the stretcher the straps keeping him firmly in place. For a moment he tried to struggle but the drugs were already starting to take effect making his movements heavy to the point of almost nonexistence. He was just so very tired and besides he wanted this didn't he? A voice spoke up one that Dan vaguely recognized

"Is this all you ever hoped for Plasmius?"

Dans eyes blearily moved and a trickle of surprise as slow as molasses filled him. Fright night stood there his gaze fixed on Vlad. Dan didn't understand what was going on. Since when had Fright Night and Vlad been buddies?

"No Fright Night. I wish my dear Madeline was here as well but Dan shall have to be enough as my son. They never should have gone with that oaf to the restaurant but I suppose things rarely go according to plan. Dan is depressed and I have him convinced that it's his ghost half causing it. He is too strong to leave to his own devices though, once I absorb his ghost half he will be far easier to control." Vlad answered and anger surged through Dan the first real thing he had felt since everyone had died in the accident.

"Heart rate climbing." A mechanical voice reported and Vlad did something because Dan felt drowsiness surge into him but before he fully lost consciousness he swore that Vlad would never have his ghost half.

In the next instant he was awake and in pain, while the fury he had felt when losing consciousness was stronger than ever. Looking down Dan realized claws impaled him, his human body sitting just a few feet away looking as if they were starting to come to.

"You!" Dan roared and Vlad flinched looking terrified. In the next instant he ripped the claws from his body and flung Vlad away to smash into the wall. The claws had fallen from Vlads hands and his words echoed through his mind. _'Once I absorb his ghost half he will be far easier to control'_

"Never!" Dan shouted snatching up the ghost gauntlets and deciding to take out Vlad ripped his ghost half away so he could only ever be a rich deceitful jerk. He faced a problem then. Dan could already feel himself weakening. He was meant to be half ghost and half human. Just being half ghost was destabilizing him and although he fully meant to merge back with his human half he couldn't leave Plasmius just lying around. He knew he could remerge with his human half from the experience of going through the Fenton Ghost Catcher and that meant Vlad and Plasmius would be able to remerge as well. It left him two options. Try and destroy Plasmius outright and hope he could still remerge even in a weaker state. Or he could absorb Plasmius stabilizing himself in the process then take his human half somewhere safe before figuring out how to merge back. Knowing he didn't have a lot of time he chose the second option flying directly into Plasmius sealing his fate and the worlds doom.


	38. Empathy

**Whew… that was way harder than I thought it would be. Now onto bigger darker things… wait I think I wrote that wrong…**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

The memories jolted to halt even though he fully expected them to continue. The effect was jarring and even as he found himself surrounded by the darkness once more it almost felt like he ran into a glass door that he swore was open space. Emotions boiled through him, emotions that on a day to day basis were muted. Here trapped within the depths of his mind though they were a fresh slash of pain to his already shocked consciousness. Guilt, anger, fear, sadness all cascaded through him and were pulled away. After a moment he realized they were being pulled towards the presence of Plasmius. The emotions were making him stronger and as the feeling of Plasmius energy closed in Dan found himself still locked within whatever dream he was having. He was tired the memories of his final human days leaving him sore to his very core. There was nothing else to do so he accepted it and waited for Plasmius to show himself since he knew he would the dread and anger drawing ever closer. Then out of nowhere warmth penetrated the dread. It was as slow as a creeping fog but it chased Plasmius away with a hiss back into the darkness. A pinpoint of light appeared as Plasmius vanished and Dan took notice of the small bright spot especially when it steadily grew larger.

"Your dreamscape is dark." A young voice said a body slowly coalescing from the light.

Dan blinked confused as he recognized Ellie. "Little one what are you doing here?"

Ellie looked down seemingly embarrassed. "You were having nightmares and I could feel them and I just wanted to help."

"You should not be here." Dan answered and although he would never admit it he was touched that she had sought him out to try and help. Here in his mind he could feel that and respond in kind.

Ellie shook her head "You shouldn't be here either. This place is bad for you. Do you want to wake up now?" she asked offering a hand to him.

Dan didn't want to be asleep any longer so he nodded and took her hand.

Dans eyes opened to find a mound of silver hair and a weight on his chest. Usually this would cause him alarm and attack whatever was touching him but he awoke feeling strangely calm. He remembered what Sam had told him before about most ghosts needing to sleep these days but he had never expected it to affect him too. He had been mostly fine as they traveled entering an almost trance like state some nights even though he was constantly vigilant and could snap to complete alertness almost instantly. He hadn't realized that as soon as he felt secure the exhaustion he had been keeping at bay would swamp him so completely and because of that Dan had fallen asleep without even realizing he had done so. Now though he realized that this was something he was going to have to exist with and the thought of it didn't make him very happy. He shifted slightly brushing silver hair from his face as he took in his newest predicament. Ellie was curled up on top of his chest her breathing even and steady. Dan didn't dare move not wanting to disturb her since she had helped him although he couldn't even begin to understand why. A foot tapped the ground drawing his attention and he glanced over to see Vivi standing there arms crossed. It was still dark outside the only light in the room coming from the slight glow the children's ghost forms gave off. As children they couldn't yet control their auras so they glowed all the time while Dan had plenty of practice in cutting it off.

"You didn't scare her did you?" Vivi demanded seeing he was awake "Cuz if you were mean to her I will do something awful to you."

Dan wanted to laugh, he had been rescued from his own mind by a four year old and was now being threatened by an eight year old. Not to mention that both were children of the same woman he had tried to kill for six or so years in his world. If his afterlife got any stranger Dan was going to start thinking he was hallucinating.

"No I didn't scare her but what did she do and how?" Dan asked

Ellie sighed before shivering slightly and Dan realized that the room was slightly cool. Slowly he allowed his core to warm the air around himself making Ellie snuggle further into a ball with a happy sigh.

Vivi groaned her arms dropping "Now you've done it. She is going to be begging you to let her snuggle you all the time now."

Dan frowned as he realized the idea didn't bother him "You didn't answer my question."

Vivi pulled up the footstool and after wrapping a blanket around herself she released her transformation then sat down. Moments later Ellie's transformation came undone as well making Dan jump slightly.

"Ellie is an Empath and apparently she likes you although you remind me of a predator. Apparently you give off a nice guy vibe deep down and she can feel emotions around her so she can really tell who people are down to their cores. Her powers are still developing but I think one of her talents will be messing with peoples dreamscapes eventually. She can't control it at all yet so that's why we moved out here where there is less people. Earlier she woke me up in a panic and said that you were stuck and needed help. However she needed my help to get to you since I can help her focus her power." Vivi said all at once before taking a breath."At least this means she will be wore out for a bit. I can bring her back to her bed now." softly the concern on her face giving away the fact that she was worried for her sibling.

Dan lay there processing this new strange information. The little girl on his chest could see to his very core? The thought actually frightened him a little, made him wonder how she could stand to touch him since he always figured that his core was soaked in rage and blood. Yet from what Vivi had said clearly her sister saw something more than that and Dan wondered if that was what Sam saw in him as well. A kind of dissonance spiked through his brain and Ellie flinched as it did before a peaceful sensation stole though him battling the pain back. Understanding dawned as he realized Ellie was trying to unconsciously heal his emotional scars. Dan frowned and schooled his emotions back into the hard shell of his mind before wrapping his arms around Ellie as he sat up. The girl didn't even twitch as he stood.

"Show me where to bring her. You look as if you both need some more sleep anyways." He said seeing Vivis eyes were heavy as well.

Vivi nodded and stood dropping the blanket back to the footstool before starting through the house. The girls room was a long rectangle split in two by a beaded curtain that did nothing to hide the mess. Dan eyed the messy floor and began to float rather than trying to navigate the minefield. A curtain covered window was directly across from him and the only light in the room came from a nightlight that painted stars on the ceiling. The small bed in the far corner of the room was a nest of clothes toys and blankets and since Vivi was climbing into the rumbled yet marginally neater bed on the other side of the room he assumed the nest was Ellies.

As he moved forward Vivis voice stopped him. "Just bring her here. If you don't she will probably just wake up in a bit and come over anyways. Besides I don't know what she saw in your mind but I don't want her to have nightmares alone."

Her words froze him for a second but he did as she asked laying Ellie gently down in the bed so VIvi could curl up around her.

"She saw nothing but darkness in my mind." Dan whispered and Vivi sighed one arm wrapping around Ellies middle as Dan pulled the blankets over the two of them.

"She is an Empath. She doesn't have to see anything to know its there." Vivi murmured her eyes sliding shut and Dan stayed there watching the two of them until he was sure Vivi was asleep before phasing through the house until he reached the kitchen.

"Are they ok?" a voice asked and Dan spun one hand flaring a bright green. Valerie stood in the doorway of the kitchen her face pensive.

Dan snuffed out the ectoenergy in his fist and pulled out one of the kitchen chairs. "Your children are annoyances." He grumbled and Valerie could tell he meant absolutely nothing by it.

"Welcome to my world Dan." She laughed and walked forward to start making coffee.


	39. Morning Coffee

**Well…um… yeah I got nothing… Check out my Miraculous Ladybug stories if you want to die of cuteness overload. Other than that enjoy the new chapter.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

To Dans surprise Sam was up an hour later and accepted a cup of coffee from Valerie with little more than a grumble. It took her almost another hour to turn into a functioning person but once she did she started asking Valerie all kinds of questions about Tucker. For the most part Dan remained silent simply absorbing information. Tucker had continued on with the inventing under the Fenton name. Jazz and sometimes a girl named Dani would help him and right now he was studying portals. He had been experimenting with the ability to create portals voluntarily but so far he hadn't had much luck. He had managed to open two portals but the duration of their opening was so short he hadn't counted it. Also he couldn't control where the portals opened up to. There were several ghost and even some people who could sense natural portals but creating one seemed out of reach. Tucker had discovered a way to seal portals though and he had been working out in the field to tweak his new toy as he called them when he had simply vanished. When Sam figured that she had enough information she stood and stretched.

"Does his suit have a way to be tracked or are we just going to have to get lucky?" Sam asked

"His suit has a tracker. I can give you his last coordinates and as long as they haven't taken his suit off or something you should be able to track it for there. Although, they shouldn't be able to get it off him while he is still alive anyways… I hope." Valerie answered

"Suit?" Dan asked his interest piqued.

Valerie glanced at Sam who shrugged. "You can tell him if you want. It's your twos brain child anyways, I'm going to get dressed though."

They watched Sam leave and Dan turned his gaze back to Valerie. "Do I need to ask again?"

Valerie snorted then in the next instant she was covered by a red and black suit complete with the Phantom symbol emblazoned on her chest and helmet covering her head. Dan sprang to his feet surprised the sight of her in battle ready armor bringing back all kinds of fighting instincts.

"Did I scare you?" Valerie asked the humor in her voice obvious as the helmet retracted and she took a sip of her coffee.

"You caught me off guard." Dan answered grudgingly as he moved around to stand beside her eyeing the suit curiously.

"This isn't the one Vlad gave you right?" Dan asked and she shook her head.

"A lot has happened this suit is as much a part of me as being a ghost is a part of Sam." Laying her hand flat on the table palm up a gun swiftly formed there and Dan watched fascinated as it did. It was a working weapon that she handed him and Dan suppressed a shudder happy that his timelines Valerie hadn't had this gift.

"I am rethinking my take over the world plans." Dan muttered handing the weapon back to her.

Valerie grinned and the weapon vanished in her grip. "Tuckers suit is built like mine but it's not as integrated into his bodies system as mine is. I could actually track him but I can't leave the girls and they are nowhere near ready to go out and fight anything."

"Sam and I will bring him back Valerie." Dan said. It was the least he could do really and he did want the bands to come off as well. "However I am glad my timelines Valerie didn't have your gifts. You appear to be far more…deadly."

Valerie laughed outright at his words and stood leaving her coffee on the table as her suit retracted into red bands that were on her wrists. "When you guys get back with my stupid geeky husband we will have to have a sparring match. Then we will see who is deadlier."

A smile lifted Dans lips one that for once held no malice or evil intent. "I believe I would like that but no cheating."

Valerie lightly punched his shoulder "Its only cheating if you get caught. For now though follow me I need to give you some stuff."

Dan followed her out into the garage which was not actually a garage for cars. Instead it was lined with tools, gadgets, and junk. "He's obsessed." Dan breathed

Valerie laughed. "Yes he is and since Vivi seems to be techno savvy on a ghostly level he is even more so."

Dan nodded mutely as he watched her pick her way across the table filled garage to a stand of chests that reminded him of an extra large toolbox. Opening several she pulled out packets of what looked like ectobars, a card shaped item that could have been anything and finally a tube the size and shape of a toothbrush holder. She brought the items back into the kitchen and ignoring the ectobars since there was only on real use for them she explained the other two items. The card was a tracker that was keyed into Tuckers suit and the toothbrush holder was in fact an upgraded Fenton thermos. Dan flinched when she explained that one and Valerie had explained that Sam would probably be carrying the supplies. Sam returned a few minutes later fully dressed and ready to go. Packing her bag full of the ecto bars and sliding the thermos into one of the spider legs she took the tracker that Valerie held out for her.

"I've already sent you his last known coordinates as well as how to get there. Once you get to that part the tracker should be able to pick up his signal and you should be able to figure out just how much trouble he has gotten himself into." Valerie said.

"We will get him back Val." Sam said "I've got your number and everything now so I will keep you updated so don't fret too much."

They moved towards the door when suddenly a voice asked "You're leaving already?"

All three adults turned to find both Vivi and a very sleepy Ellie rubbing her eyes and clinging one handed to her sisters nightshirt.

"Yes but we will be back and with your father so don't worry." Sam said with a smile.

"I want to come." Vivi demanded and Valerie frowned

"You are too young little miss. In fact you should still probably be sleeping. I know Ellie is still tired. Sam and Dan will be fine." Valerie answered

Vivis lips puckered "I'm almost 9 and I wanna help. I can help find Dad with my techno abilities."

Valerie shook her head "No. End of discussion. You are too young half ghost or not."

Vivi looked furious but as she was about to open her mouth to say something else Ellie broke in tugging on her sisters shirt.

"I'm sleepy still." She whined and Vivi glanced between her and the adults standing before her.

Sam moved forward and wrapped the two of them in a hug. "We will be back Vivi so don't worry. Once you get a little bigger you will be able to go on adventures with us."

Vivi wiggled out of the hug and glared up at them "Fine." She said clearly upset and picked up her sister before carrying her off to bed.

 _'She is going to be trouble.'_ Dan shot at Sam and she glared at him in return.

"It will probably take a few days round trip and we will stay in contact so see you later?" Sam said to Valerie not voicing Dans opinion.

Valerie nodded opening the door and walked out into the yard with them."Come back safe Sam and you as well Dan. If you don't I'll kick your butts."

Sam laughed and Dan actually cracked a grin as Sam transformed then together they flew up into the air ready to get the next leg of their journey started.


	40. Searching

**On the road again! For a single chapter at least… Also yes Dan is getting softer. We are almost to the reason why too.**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

They flew most of the day finding the path that Tucker had used many times before them. They traveled through three portals and sometime past noon found the area where Tuckers last position was known. As they came out of the last portal Dan paused as Sam flew forward looking for any clues as to where Tucker vanished off to. Dan let her turning his attention back to the portal before him.

It was a glowing green disk before him that compared to others he had seen was actually quite small. It also felt different to him and he wanted to know why. Curious he stuck his hand back through it and froze as he felt something within him shift. Something was calling to him from the portal and the green disk started to glow brighter steadily turning blue. With a gasp he yanked his hand back from the portal accidently pulling the energy from the portal as he pulled his hand out. There was a small pop that was more like a sensation than an actual noise and the portal before him vanished as if it had never been there at all. The energy from the portal curled within him joining his core strength heightening his other senses and for several moments he could almost feel other portals around them. Some were pinpricks while others simply didn't have enough energy to open and Dan felt more energized than he had all morning.

 _'Dan over here!'_ Sam called mentally breaking his concentration and all at once the feeling of the other portals vanished.

Dan shook his head wondering what in the heck he had just experienced and turned around looking for where Sam was. He couldn't see her but he could sense her presence a little ways off like there was a thread tying them together. Following the thread in his mind he soon came upon what looked like a battleground. Ectoblasted trees, scorched earth and the smell of ozone hung in the air in the small area that Sam stood in. As he stepped forward something crunched under his boot and glancing down he recognized a tiny ectocrystal shard.

"I wonder how many Goons it took before they finally overwhelmed him." Dan said and Sam turned to glare at him.

"Don't say stuff like that." Sam snapped clearly upset by the battleground

Dan shrugged "He is alive Sam. If they had killed him they would have left the body. Besides I don't smell any blood so it's not like he is bleeding to death somewhere. He has been captured now we just have to get him back."

"You're an ass Dan." Sam huffed as she turned around to face him. "But you are right."

Dan didn't take offence he could sense she really was upset at the blackened carnage that was before them and he knew she was simply venting. She messed with the tracker in her hands for several seconds as Dan forced himself not to bounce with impatience. Finally the thing beeped and Sam looked up at him once more almost laughing when she saw his overeager expression. "What's got you so excited?"

Dan grinned at her "The sooner we find him the sooner I can destroy something. Lets get moving shall we?"

Sam nodded and they started following the signal Tuckers suit was sending out. They traveled until nightfall having gone through two more portals and as they went through a third they were ambushed. The moment they stepped out of the portal Dan knew that there was something wrong. The air was quiet and had the feeling of being stretched too thin. Dan moved out in front of Sam who went into a fighting stance. She felt it too but neither one of them could figure out where the attack was going to come from. They moved away from the portal having come out in a bowl shaped rocky area with little cover for themselves. With a glance they both jumped to the air and that's when the Goons and other mutant creatures swarmed them. Going back to back they blasted the Goons back several at a time as they came from all directions. The Mutants were harder to take out but thankfully there were far less of them and they seemed to be less inclined to random attacks. It was like one of those awful mob games where the enemies just kept coming with no end in sight. Ecto blasts flashed past his face as he managed a glance to see how Sam was doing. Vines had sprouted from her back and ran down her arms giving her an almost octopus like look. The vines tore through what the two knives in her hands didn't and she fried the hell out of the two mutants that were stupid enough to grab hold of her. Dan was a far less elegant fighter. He simply blasted, tore, burned, and ripped apart anything that came close to him.

 _'It's like the never ending flood!'_ Sam cried mentally not having the air to speak as they fought.

 _'We need to get to ground and take them out at once.'_ Dan replied blasting his way through several Goons who were trying to get in between the two of them. _'Can you do that electric blast as I do my Wail?'_

 _'Í can try but I'm going to need a second to concentrate!'_ Sam replied as she slashed at the few Goons that were still too close. They had been forced to move away from the portal they had come through and now as if they heard the thought the Goons backed off for several seconds allowing them to slowly float downwards to a flat shelf of rock under them. The Goons seemed to be regenerating and Dan fidgeted a bit as their feet touched the ground. In the next second the mutants swarmed forward with the Goons in tow and this time Dan threw a shield around the both of them to prevent them from interrupting Sam.

"Are you ready?!" Dan demanded the strain of holding the shield making his voice sharp.

Sam jumped and in the next second a pinpoint of white light flared into existence. "Oh hell." Sam muttered as it rapidly grew out of control in her hands and Dan turned his attention to his side.

"On three." Dan said taking a deep breath and he could feel the air around them supercharging beneath his shield.

 _'One, Two…'_ Dan started in his mind needing his breath for his wail and in the next instant he dropped the shield as Sam shouted "Three!"

They unleashed their attacks at the same time in a show of fire and sound that made the earth tremble. Everything caught in the two attacks path were either shredded or vaporized within seconds and then there was silence as they cut their attacks off. Sams legs went out from under her as electric arcs crawled across the ground frying a single mutant that was just outside her attacks range. Moments later they crawled back to her and she put her hands out allowing the power to come back and reenergize her. Dan stubbornly stayed on his feet although he felt far more drained than he let on. His side of the landscape was rubble while Sam's side was a charred ash field.

"Well now, that takes care of that." Dan panted holding out a hand for Sam to take.

Sam took his hand and allowed him to help her to her feet. Her legs still felt shaky and she clung to his arm for a second as she made sure her legs wouldn't collapse while wondering if that trap had been meant for Valerie.

"Valerie wouldn't have made it out of this." Dan said practically reading her mind and Sam sighed.

She agreed with him. They had barely fended the attack off and the only reason they had in the end was because the Goons had been expecting a weaker opponent not to mention only one. Couple that with the fact that they had trump cards in the form of his wail and her new attack the Goons had stood a far less chance of succeeding against the two of them.

"I'm going to have to tell Valerie about this. We should find a place to stop for the night though not here obviously." Sam grumbled.

It was starting to get dark rather quick and Sam knew that it would be harder to find a place to sleep the later it got.

"Can you go ghost still or no?" Dan asked his voice almost sounding concerned.

Somewhere in releasing all that energy she had reverted back to human and Sam frowned as she concentrated. Two green rings enveloped her leaving her in her ghost form but she could feel that she wouldn't be up to doing much at this point other than fly. Even though they were exhausted they flew on for another hour only stopping because Sam nearly lost control of her transformation due to exhaustion. Dan offered to carry her but Sam could see that he was just as worn out and knew they both needed rest. They found a cave tucked into an outcropping and once inside they checked for anything lurking before settling in. They both ate ectobars over a small glow stick like light that was bright enough for them to see by but wouldn't be noticeable from the outside and Sam set up her sleeping bag offering one to Dan. It was more of a comfort thing for him than an actual necessity but he accepted it gratefully and decided that once they made it back to Valerie's he would have to find a way to carry his own stuff so Sam wouldn't have to carry anything for him. Once Sam got a little bit of her strength back she grew her Blood blossom barrier across the entrance of the cave and feeling a bit more secure she started to relax.

"We should have watches." Sam said her voice soft in the darkness.

Dan grunted in agreement "I'll take first."

Sam withheld a snort Danny always took first watch too and it was nice to see another similarity between them. "Ok wake me in a few hours then."

Six hours later Dan woke her only because she would be furious if he didn't. She was upset that he had waited so long to wake her up but Dan simply explained that he didn't need sleep. Sam didn't believe him and he laid on the opposite side of the cave she could feel his apprehension as he forced himself to stay conscious. With a groan Sam stood and dragged her sleeping bag over to his and sat down stuffing the majority of it behind her so she could rest her back against the rocky walls comfortably.

"Dan you need sleep and clearly you are nervous about something." Sam said her voice soft as the darkness that surrounded them.

Dan swallowed and tried to ignore her but she had planted herself mere feet away on purpose and suddenly he sighed. "You're not going to leave me alone are you?" he asked and Sam chuckled.

"On this no, you're having nightmares aren't you."

"Wha… how?" he started then grumbled "Good guess. I suppose Danny had nightmare too like some little child."

His words were biting but Sam understood "Its ok, I have them too. On the really bad nights Danny would sleep with his head in my lap."

"What are you offering your lap then?" Dan asked snarky and to his surprise she answered with a simple "Yes."

Moving to her side he eyed her curiously but there was no hint of sarcasm or irritation on her face as he asked "Really?"

Sam nodded "Go ahead Dan you really do need sleep. And besides you are warm so I don't mind."

Dan rolled his eyes at her comment but after a moment of shifting about he laid his head down in Sams lap feeling foolish. He was exhausted, even though he pretended not to be and Sam so far hadn't led him wrong. In this new world his body clearly needed sleep and the longer he fought it the worse off he would be. With a heavy sigh he let his eyes close and the darkness that seemed ever present overwhelm him. It was somewhere in that darkness he began to dream about his past once more.


	41. Fearless

**Sorry for being late. Turns out I will be attending a funeral sometime later this week so don't be too surprised if my updates are late again for a bit. As for this chapter here it is the reason why Dan can't hurt kids. Well my reason at least. Yay for more memories! Its a three part I think...**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probably a good thing too**.

* * *

It was after he had combined with Plasmius, he was 16 again, had been very badly injured, and it was his own dam fault. When he had destroyed Amity Park the first time he had done so in a rage. Initially he had only destroyed the things in the city that reminded him of Vlad but then the Ghostketeers or Masters Blasters or whatever they were called had started attacking him. He had returned fire full force taking them out and badly injuring several of them. Valerie had chosen that moment to interfere and he had nearly killed her. Her father had saved her life although it had cost him his arm to do so. Dan had stopped his rampage at the sight of so much blood pouring from a person. The shock of it had been enough to jerk him back to a semi stable mindset. He had fled Amity Park and into the ghost zone for the first time ever feeling as if he belonged there. Within a day or two Skulker had found him and after noting his strange new look had attacked him. Dan had all but destroyed Skulker stopping just in time to ask why he had bothered to attack him. Skulker informed him that Vlad had somehow survived the mansion falling in on him and had sent him to try and end his afterlife. Infuriated Dan had thrown Skulker not bothering to finish him off and began his search for Vlad. That search had taken him to several cities across the US and two in countries overseas. He tore those cities apart trying to get to Vlad not caring who or what got in his way. Vlad had gone underground in an attempt to hide and Dan turned his attention to any company Vlad owned destroying anything and everything that was tied to the man. It had taken a while but Dan had finally gotten a lead on where Vlad was hiding out. He had flown to the large city (Dan had forgotten the name of it the moment he arrived) and gone to the port where Vlad was supposed to be on board one of his yachts. Instead of finding Vlad Dan had walked into an ambush. Infuriated he had wiped out all the people that were part of the ambush while taking heavy damage from the anti ghost weapons. Now he was flying deeper into the city terribly injured while just barely being able to keep a hold of his invisibility and intangibility as he flew through buildings. Finally he could hold on no more and he fell from the sky in a back alley landing in a pile of boxes and old newspaper. He laid there practically unable to move and slowly bleeding out. The papers shifted and squeaked around him and Dan wondered if rats would even try and eat a ghost. Then a fleeting touch brushed his chest where a particularly nasty wound was. Dan snarled eyes flashing open as he grabbed someone by the neck. His eyes took a moment to focus and he realized he had hold of a little girl who appeared to be no more than 12. She was dirty with ragged clothes on and while one of her hands griped his wrist the other traced fingertips along his arm.

"How do you want to die?" Dan snarled or tried to. It came out as more of a weak grunt.

The girls face scrunched in a strange expression. In fact if he didn't know better he could swear she was concerned. He hissed annoyed wanting to see fear on the kids face as he killed her but her expression didn't change. Even when he applied pressure cutting off all her air she had a look of concern on her face, but there was absolutely no trace of fear. The rapid tracing she was doing with her one hand slowed as she couldn't breathe and finally Dan noticed that she was tracing words on his forearm.

'Please you're hurt I help.'

Those words stunned Dan into letting her go his arm falling limply to the ground. He could hear the girl panting and coughing as she took in great lungfuls of air.

"Leave before I decide to kill you." He hissed happy that he at least sounded slightly menacing.

The girl in turn glared at him pursing her lips out then, she stood and ran down the alley turning the corner and disappearing from sight. Dan allowed his eyes to close his mind drifting while he ever so slowly bled out. He didn't know how much time passed but eventually he felt those same light fingertips prodding at him. Dan tried to move or growl or do anything but he was too weak he could only lay there and drift in the darkness. Eventually his strength returned enough that he was able to pry open his eyes. It was dim outside and he figured that it was probably close to dawn. As his eyes adjusted a flat brown surface greeted him, a surface he recognized as cardboard. The next thing he noticed was the sound of rain tapping out a faint pattern on the cardboard roof over his head. He could also feel the rain on his feet and realized he was too tall for whatever box he was in. Dan tried to shift to sit up and found that he was still too weak to do so. Instead he managed to raise his head only to discover yet another surprise. Bandages covered his torso and curled up next to his side like a puppy was the same girl he had tried to choke the life out of. Dan gaped at her too stunned to even think of hurting her. He laid his head back down on the ground and for the first time in close to two years he felt sorry for something he did. The girl whose name he didn't even know had helped him even after he tried to kill her.

"Girl." Dan grumbled and the girl snuggled against him sighed without stirring. "Hey girl!" Dan said again louder. The girl uncurled herself and slowly made her way into a technically upright position. The box wasn't very tall but then neither was the girl in question. She rubbed her eyes with one dirty sleeve bracing herself with her other arm. Yawning she showed off missing teeth and the bruise where Dan had grabbed her neck the night before. Yawning done she eyed him blearily and realizing he was awake she instantly brightened and smiled at him. The smile was horribly disarming and Dan found himself not knowing what to say. For two years he had been attacking, killing, and destroying anyone or anything that had gotten in his path while trying to kill Vlad. Now this little girl showed him the smallest kindness and he found himself feeling strangely lost. He couldn't even work up the slightest bit of hatred for her. Annoyed at himself Dan sighed "What is your name girl?"

The girl frowned, lifted his hand up into her lap, and began tracing words onto his palm. 'No name. Don't remember.'

This surprised Dan but he knew that there had to be a reason for her to not tell him something as simple as a name. "Everyone has a name brat, what do people call you?"

Annoyance flashed across the girls face and she reached for his arm again. He jerked away snarling "Just say your dam name!"

The girl let out an annoyed hiss and realizing he didn't want to be touched wrote in the air 'Cant mute.'

Dan froze and let her grab his hand this time eyeing the bruising around her neck. Noticing his stare she shook her head swiftly writing 'Not fault born like this. People call me lots of things none of them nice.'

They sat there in silence listening to the rain patter overhead and for some reason that Dan couldn't understand felt bad for her. She sat watching him, had bandaged him, and now she simply looked completely curious without an ounce of fear in her gaze. He remembered the look on her face when he had grabbed her. She had been completely fearless then too and Dan decided that until she told him otherwise that would be what he would call her.

"You need a name and since you were stupid enough to help me I suppose I should give you one. I will call you Fearless understand?" Dan said watching her

Her face broke out into the biggest grin he had ever seen on a human and she wiggled like a happy puppy as she traced the letters of her name on his palm adding 'I like it!' to the end.

Dan sighed wondering why he hadn't simply killed her as she wiggled out of the box slipped into a too large coat and ran off into the rain. Some time passed before she came back to the box soaked. In her hands she held a bag filled with more medical supplies and some warm bread. It had stopped drizzling about 15 minutes before and the sky had lightened considerably as the sun steadily rose. She dropped the soaked oversized coat she wore onto a nail that stuck out of the wall and dropped to her knees shuffling her way into the box. She placed the bag up in the corner near his head then pulled out the bread. She broke it in half and held it up near Dans mouth.

Dan turned his head away saying "I am a ghost I don't need human food." Suddenly his stomach growled and Dan felt her fingers trace out 'stomach sounds hungry.'

Dan turned and glared at her "I already said umph…"

Fearless shoved the bread into his mouth mid sentence and for a moment Dan almost spit the bread back out in sheer spite. It was warm however, as well as surprisingly good and as he chewed Dan realized he couldn't remember the last time he had eaten anything. Instead of complaining he swallowed then looked over at Fearless who grinned at him. When she realized he had finished that bite she dangled another piece and Dan snatched the bread from her hand forcing himself to sit up. She scowled at him and took his other hand as he braced his back against the back of the box.

Swiftly Fearless wrote 'You shouldn't move yet you will hurt more.'

Dan shook her off "You should eat and worry about yourself. My injuries will heal far quicker than you can imagine."

She finished off her half of the warm bread and began to pull out medical supplies from the plastic bag.

"Did you steal those?" Dan asked and Fearless glanced up at him guiltily before nodding. She wrote on his leg this time 'no money, people mean, have to steal in case get hurt. I know all back doors.' She smiled proudly at that last part then yawned hugely. She reached forward to start unwrapping the bandages on his chest. Dan wanted to growl at her and send her flying for having the confidence to touch him but he realized it wouldn't do anything. She would probably just use the medical supplies to patch herself up then continue trying to help him no matter what he said or did. Dan supposed he could just kill her but the truth was the ecto weapons had taken far more out of him than he had thought. It would probably be another day at least before his injuries healed to a point where he could easily move around. In other words he was stuck in this too small box with this little girl who didn't have the sense to be afraid of him.

Dan sighed and allowed her to treat his wounds. Her touch was feather light and she hardly hurt him at all even when she had to use some butterflies to pull a deep gash closed. When she was done she wrapped all the used, bloody bandages in a plastic bag and ran off again. Dan shifted so he could lay flat and pretended to be asleep when she got back. To his surprise when she returned Fearless shuffled right back into the box before she curled up next to him.

Several moments passed and before her breathing evened out into sleep he couldn't help but ask. "What are you doing?"

Fearless yawned and by the sound of it pulled herself back up into half sitting position before she traced on an uninjured area of his chest 'going back to sleep.'

Surprised Dan opened his eyes and asked "Shouldn't you be going to school or scavenging or something?"

She shook her head her eyes half closed in clear exhaustion. 'Safer to sleep in day, warmer, not as many attacks, never go to school. Need sleep now.'

She laid back down snuggling against his side while being mindful of the bandages.

Dan couldn't help but growl "And why must you curl up next to me?!"

Fearless didn't even bother to sit up this time just reached up and traced 'You're warm and you take up the whole box.'

Dan didn't know what to say to that and after a few minutes her breathing settled out into a gentle rhythm signifying that she was fast asleep.


	42. Fearful

**So I literally had to update this from my phone. Which I will not be doing again. This has not been a good week computers messed up so I haven't been able to write at all. I have one more chapter after this ready but if my computer isn't fixed by the time I post it I may have to take a break for a bit**.

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probabl** **y a good thing too**.

* * *

A few days passed then two weeks and Dan fell into a rhythm with the little girl he called Fearless. He had fully healed in two days but for some reason he stuck around watching over her as she slept through the day. He didn't use the box once he had been able to move around properly and one day as he watched her he noticed her shivering curled into a ball at the back of the box. He sat feeling a strange amount of concern for her and for the first time realized that it was cool outside even in the sun. It was obvious that she was cold and all she had was a measly ragged too short oversized coat to wrap around herself. Dan told himself he didn't care and that he was only doing it to repay her for helping him but he got up and went intangible as well as invisible. He went to a nearby mall and stole a thick warm blanket, a proper jacket, and a few other odds and ends. He also stole food so she would have something to eat before running around all night long. By the time he got back it was dusk and he was surprised to find her looking around the alley tears in her eyes. Dan dropped the items in his hands as he turned visible.

"What happened?" he demanded and she rushed forward hugging him round the middle.

'You were gone you didn't say goodbye.' She wrote with a shaking hand.

Dan looked down at her and in a small part of his mind he felt a surge of annoyance and hatred. That feeling surprised him and he crushed it back deciding that he liked the warmth of the hug she was giving him. She had been concerned for him even though there was no need. She had accepted him even though by now he had flat out told her he was a malicious spirit bent on destroying the man he felt wronged him. Fearless hadn't cared and instead asked him if he wanted to share the last piece of fruit she had left over. Now she hugged him because she thought he had left and that single act changed things for him. In an instant he decided to stay at her side. He could always hunt down Vlad later and for now he found himself enjoying the look on her face as he showed her what he had stolen for her. When she left that night in her new coat to go scavenge Dan left too, he didn't go far however, he had just wanted to find something better for her to sleep in than a box. For one it was starting to rain a bit more and he was tired of his legs and feet getting wet since the box wasn't big enough to cover all of him.

He went to several different places and eventually found a long tall playhouse that Dan figured would suit Fearless perfectly. It had enough room for a small cot and a tiny table. The best, most important part was it would keep the wind and rain off the two of them, which in his mind was far better than the molding box. He carried it back to the alley and set it up. Then he sat outside and waited for Fearless to return. He had already put all of her belongings inside and disposed of the despised boxes. When she did finally show up it was near dawn and she too had a surprise. Fearless carried a small puppy that she named Cookie and the ridiculous animal took to him as fast as she had. Fearless had been awed by the house and asked several times 'Its really mine? You are staying here with me right?'

Dan had chuckled and nodded each time the puppy happy to chase its tail and curl up with her in the cot when they went to sleep that morning.

Time passed and Fearless celebrated her 13th birthday. He stole a cake and decorations as well as some little presents for her. Including a small heater since it was starting to snow outside and he had found her shivering in the night one time. He found that he enjoyed making her face light up with joy and he even enjoyed the little dogs' happy antics. For Dan this was the most relaxed he had been since losing his human half. Those dark angry thoughts about Vlad still made their way across his mind at times but Dan had become almost immune to them. He was still searching for Vlad when he felt like it but it wasn't as important to him now. He found he was content and happy until the day that Fearless had come home with a black eye. Dan had nearly flown into a rage demanding to know what happened especially since the puppy Cookie was also limping.

Realizing he wouldn't let her rest until she told him Fearless had sighed and sat him down after bandaging the cut Cookie had on its leg. Dan stole an icepack and she placed it on her eye writing what had happened on his arm. A gang war had started in the city because of a new gangs rising influence. Unfortunately most of the city was going to be sucked into the war especially the poorer areas like the area that the alley way was in. She had gotten mixed up in a gang fight because she had tried to help a girl her age get away from two guys. One of the men had struck her and Cookie had bitten the man allowing Fearless to get away safely after that. Dan had been infuriated by this because no one touched what was his and survived. Dan wanted to go show the foolish little men who they were dealing with but Fearless refused to let him go begging him not to make it worse. Dan had reluctantly agreed but when she crept out the next night he made sure to follow close behind invisibly. The dog seemed to notice his presence but to his surprise it never gave him away. The fighting on the streets became worse and Dan decided it was time for them to leave. He began searching for a new place for them to go but it was winter and even though he could literally pick up the small house and move it to a new city or state Dan realized that it would be hard on Fearless because recourses were scarce outside the big cities. Dan followed her every night and for the most part she stayed out of trouble. She had multiple bolt holes and was a very street smart kid. After all she had been surviving on her own for years before Dan had come along. She had a small run in with a police officer but the officer had merely grabbed her and put her in the back of his car to take her to the local orphanage. Thankfully Dan was able to pass his appearance off as just passing by and telling Fearless that the dog had found him. He had turned her invisible and intangible much to her delight and he had flown her out of the car. That night he discovered she could whistle. He had decided to fly her back home and when she realized he really was flying she had tugged on his suit pointing up into the sky a pleading look on her face. He had shot up towards the clouds and Fearless had let loose a sharp whistle as they had hung high above the city. Her eyes were filled with joy and he shifted her so that he could hold her about the waist leaving her arms and legs free to dangle. She immediately took up the superman pose and laughing Dan had flown her around listening to her whistle in absolute joy until she had begun to shiver. The faintest streaks of dawn were approaching when he slowly started to fly them back to the tiny ally house. Fearless curled up against him in his arms tracing 'Thank you' again and again even as she slipped into sleep a silly little smile plastered on her face. The only unhappy member that night was the dog Cookie. He sat outside the door of the little house looking forlorn with its head on its paws.

'Oops' Dan thought with a chuckle happy to know that the dog at least knew its way back to the house. He didn't know it at the time but that night was the beginning of the end of everything.

Fearless showed him the flyer two days later. It was a wanted/warning poster and it had his face on it. There was a large reward on the poster as well as Vlads signature at the bottom. Dan had snarled at the paper his hatred for Vlad redoubling. The fool had practically put a bounty on his head, and Dan decided that he would have to take care of Vlad after all. He explained to Fearless what his plans were and flat out told her that he planned on killing Vlad one way or another. Fearless had taken his hand squeezing it tight before writing 'I help, but no killing others if unnecessary.'

Dan felt his jaw drop and he fell to his knees before drawing her in a tight hug. She couldn't understand why what she had written had such a profound effect on him because he had never told her how he had been created. She trusted him more than had gave her credit for and Fearless had just wanted to help him. Dan took her trust and treasured it, he wouldn't let her help of course but she didn't need to know that. The weather was ever so slightly starting to warm up and Dan began to search for a new home and new clues as to Vlads whereabouts. Sometimes he was gone through the whole day as Fearless slept. He was always back by nightfall and always accompanied her invisibly when she wandered the streets. Sometimes when he knew he wouldn't make it back he made Fearless promise to not go out without him. She never broke her promise to him and he always took her flying the moment he came back to the little house. Sometimes they took the dog with them and the silly creature seemed to enjoy flying as much as Fearless did. With the weather turning warmer the turf war started to heat up once again. One night two men cornered Fearless and demanded money from her. When she signed that she had no money they suggested other ways for her to pay and true to her name she had kicked in their shins before darting away the puppy Cookie following closely. She hadn't noticed the other two men at the other end of the ally and they grabbed her laughing as she struggled to get away. She bit one of the men on the arm as the puppy bit the other man on the leg and the one holding Fearless yelled hauling his other arm back to strike her. His blow never landed, instead he screamed as his arm snapped in two and he dropped Fearless who stumbled away from him before the man fell to his knees as he clutched his shattered limb. Dan shimmered into view placing himself directly before Fearless and the puppy Cookie who was growling placing his own little body between the fallen Fearless who was now glaring up at the other men from the ground. Dan had taken so long to act because he had promised to never interfere if she could get away. So far Fearless had always slipped away from any danger never needing his assistance. However Dan drew the line when someone dared to raise a hand against her.

"Who the hell are you?" the man with the shattered arm yelled making Dan wince because of his superior hearing.

Dan let his aura flare brighter, his features twisting into a maniacal snarl as he hissed "Your worst nightmare."

For all four men this show was too much and they fled down the alley screaming the whole way. Fearless huffed behind him and for a moment Dan froze worried that she would be upset at his actions but when he turned he realized she was laughing so hard tears ran down her cheeks. Dan lifted her to her feet chuckling as he said "I'm glad one of us is enjoying ourselves."

'The look on their faces!' she traced and nearly fell over again she was laughing so hard.

Dan took her home ignoring the complaints she etched on his chest. Halfway there they passed a movie theater he had never noticed before and to try and ease her disappointment in the early night he snuck her in. They stayed there through several movies, Dan turning them invisible each time security made their rounds. Somewhere near dawn Fearless fell asleep the puppy curled up on her chest. Dan took them home and decided to make it his absolute priority to get them out of this city. He wrote Fearless a note telling her where he had gone and told her to pack the things she had. He had stolen a suitcase a while ago so she would have someplace to store her steadily growing pile of clothes. Dan planned as he flew to the next town over and snuck into the small library to use a computer. He could break down the tiny cot for it was one of those compact camping things and tie it to the suitcase. He wasn't going to bring the tiny house because he could always just sneak her into an unused hotel room in any town they went to along the way. He figured he could carry either her or the suitcase on his back but she would have to carry the puppy because Dan wouldn't have enough hands. After what seemed only like a few hours of searching Dan found a little place in Florida he figured Fearless would love. It would be warm all year and he could sneak her into all the theme parks that littered the state. She would love the idea he knew, as well as the beaches and Dan slipped from the library excited to tell her the news. He was surprised to discover that it was sunset and realized he had been in the building nearly all day. He was halfway back to the city admiring the stunning sunset when a sudden wind blew out of nowhere. It was a gentle wind and Dan swore he heard a voice within it whispering 'goodbye'. Fear clutched at his heart and Dan flew at top speed rushing to get back to the tiny house. It was dark by the time he made it and he was relieved to see the tiny light on inside.


	43. Fear

**Sorry I am late... Again. My computer is still busted and I can't get the old files from it. I am taking a break from this story for about two weeks so I can build back up my buffer and so that I can deal with life in general. Its been a rough month… In any case this is a good place to stop as any and when I come back we will see what has happened to Sam and Vivi! See you guys soon!**

 **Disclaimer! I dont own Danny Phantom... its probabl** **y a good thing too**.

* * *

He landed and threw the door open calling "Fearless I have…" Dan froze mid sentence his mind taking in the tiny trashed room and the man sitting sprawled across the small cot his muddy boots planted up on the table.

"Finally!" the man exclaimed making his way into a somewhat standing position "Been sittin here half the dang gone day the stu…grk"

Dan had moved in a blink of an eye one hand wrapping around the stupid mans throat the other gripping his shirt front. "Where is she?!" Dan roared the tiny hut shivering at the force of his words. The man instantly paled his hands coming up to Dans hands that were wrapped about his throat. He tried and swiftly failed at his attempt to pry Dans hands off his neck. Dan could feel himself losing what little patience he had and he shook the man violently his aura brightening in his fury.

"Go…uk…" the man managed unable to get air in or out.

Dan snarled able to smell the waves of fear coming off the man. Forgetting his strength Dan flung him to the side sending him smashing through the wall and into the alley where he lay prone. Dan stalked out after him lifted him up by the collar and smashed him into the hard brick wall blood droplets striking his face from somewhere.

"Where?!" he roared again but the man didn't answer in fact he slumped over Dans arm, limp as a used rag. Dan paused for a moment listening and realized he couldn't hear a heartbeat, the man was dead and he had killed him. Dan tossed the man to the side in disgust his only concern was that he hadn't told Dan where he could find Fearless. Dan searched the mans pockets but came up empty and just as he was ready to start tearing the city apart a small whine caught his attention.

Dan spun around to find Cookie sitting almost at the entrance of the alley.

"Cookie?" Dan called and the pup waved his plume tail once in acknowledgement but he looked strange to Dan and after a moment he realized why. The pup's fur was normally a dark brown color where as now it was almost blond. The body also had a strange glow about it and Dan realized with a chill that the dog was dead.

"Cookie?" Dan called again taking a step towards the animal

The pup yipped then turned and darted off. Dan followed swiftly not daring to lose sight of the plumed tail that waved like a flag before him. He followed the animal for nearly ten minutes not caring who saw him as he followed the ghost pup. Finally the pup slowed to a trot down a dim alley way passing a small lump of fur halfway down. Dan paused by the lump recognizing Cookies body. The little ghost pup had seemed unconcerned as it passed its body and as Dan looked up he realized Cookies ghost was waiting for him at the entrance to yet another side alley close by. Dan left Cookies body where it was and moved forwards realizing that he could make out voices as he approached the next turn off.

"Man now what are we gonna do? The boss man isn't gonna like the fact that we can't collect this Dan dudes bounty. Has Duce checked in yet cuz this idea is trashed. Why dija halfta knock the kid round so much?" a man slurred sounding drunk

"The brat bit me and after I killed that stupid mutt she wouldn't stop attacking me so I made her. Aint my fault besides you helped." Another voice answered

Dan could hear two others breathing in the alley and he turned the corner following Cookies lead.

Four backs presented themselves to him and at their feet lay a small human body. Cookies ghost trotted through the one mans legs causing him to shiver and only stopped when he was directly beside Fearless. The men clearly couldn't see the pup as it sat next to where Fearless laid his plume of a tail curling about his paws and he cocked his head at Dan clearly waiting for something.

Dan could tell from his position that Fearless was dead, Cookie would have fetched him either way but Dan could just tell that she was gone and she wouldn't be returning. There would be no Florida, no beach, and no happiness not for him and not for anyone else ever again. Dan could feel his rage building, all the excess annoyance, all the hatred towards human kind, everything came to a boil and tore open the healing wound that had been his heart.

"Good Cookie." Dan choked out and that was the last good thing Dan said to anyone or anything for years to come. The pups tail thumped once before dissipating as Cookie passed over to whatever came next.

All four men spun around their fear instantly saturating the air.

"How the heck did you find us?" the one drunk man exclaimed and it was the last thing he said.

Dan moved faster than their simple minds could process and when he was done three of the four men lay dead practically torn apart as the fourth tried to drag himself away from the carnage whimpering. Dan had shattered both of his legs so he couldn't run away as he dealt with one of the other men who for some reason thought a human gun could work on ghosts. Now Dan had finished with that fool and he had regained enough of his sanity to desire answers. His revenge was not satisfied by these three paltry men, four if he counted the first one he had killed at the alley house. Standing he turned and walked slowly over to the fifth man who was still desperately trying to drag himself away. Dan caught up to him easy and stepped on one of his shattered legs exacting a scream from the man.

Wincing Dan snarled "Shut up!"

The man did as asked unable to control the sobs and whimpers that broke the otherwise silent night. Dan flipped the man over onto his back eliciting a harsh yelp from the man but thankfully he didn't scream again. Making a note to steal some earplugs before he decided to torture anyone else, Dan simply stared down at the only remaining living person in the alley trying to decide what to do next. After a moment when the tension was thick enough to cut with a knife Dan fell into a crouch beside the man raising a blood covered hand to the mans chest.

"I am going to give you two options." Dan said tapping his blood soaked claws against the mans sternum. "Number one you give me all the information I desire and I will kill you so swift you won't even realize you died. Number two you don't give me what I want and I get to see how long I can torture you. Either way I'm going to get something useful from you before your pitiful life expires."

"One… number one… please… I will tell you anything just please no more…" the man begged and Dan nodded accepting his terms.

Dan asked anything and everything he could think of from how they had found the little house in the back alley to how many people were in the gang the four men were a part of. The man spoke quickly answering every question to the best of his ability. Some questions he didn't know the answers to and Dan had accepted this fact with a wicked smile. The man had already given up his fellow gang members and Dan knew that someone higher up would have more information. They had taken something precious from him and Dan was going to return the favor by starting at the bottom and working his way up. When the man outlived his usefulness Dan snapped his neck keeping his side of the bargain. He waited for several moments hoping that he would get lucky and the man would manifest as a ghost but his hopes were dashed when nothing happened. His initial fury sated for the moment, Dan stood and turned walking in a daze to where Fearless body still lay on the concrete. He dropped to her side brushing a finger across her cheek leaving a bloody smear.

Taking a deep breath to try and steady himself he gathered Fearless into his arms to take her back to the one place they had been happy. He collected Cookie on his way back down the alley as well. After the loyalty the silly creature had displayed he deserved a better place to rest than some dark dirty back alley. He took them both back to the little house terrifying everyone in his path because he didn't bother to make himself invisible. Besides he didn't care what the stupid humans thought he was for he was going to be their destruction soon. He ignored the body still sprawled in the alley and with a gentleness he would soon no longer possess he wrapped Fearless and the dog Cookie in a blanket before placing them on the cot. He then just sat there before them his mind running rampant slowly becoming darker and angrier.

'Something else you couldn't protect' a voice sneered from the back of his mind the same voice that had driven him to rampage after Skulker had attacked him. Dan snarled and something deep within him snapped coming suddenly into being. His aura flared and his whole body lit on fire. In that instant his fire core activated seeming to burn him from the inside out as it came to life. For a moment Dan blacked out and when he came to the whole little house was burning around him. He stumbled outside through the hole in the wall and watched it burn figuring it was probably for the best when it came to Fearless. He kept adding to the fire when it started to die down and by the time the sun rose there was nothing left of the place except ash and a few melted puddles of metal. The concrete and brick had a glassy coat to them for his fire was far hotter than normal flames. Dan had a handle on his new flame powers now as well and he disposed of the other body as well turning it to ash. He was going to turn the one who ordered Fearless death to ash too. He was going to turn the whole city to ash if that's what it took.

A snarl escaped his throat making him jerk in surprise, fire coated his hands and the wall before him was smashed inwards. He had lost it for a brief moment and couldn't recall even stepping towards the wall much less punching it. Thankfully this building was deserted not that Dan cared about property damage. He did care about getting his revenge though and he reigned in his fury attempting to get a grip. He needed to be somewhat smart needed to be somewhat conscious of his actions or he would never be able to find the man that was responsible. The last man he had killed had given him information and it was past time he acted on it.

It had taken him three weeks of terrorizing to finally get to the boss man, the fool had tried to run in the end but unlike Vlad he didn't have the resources or the intelligence to hide for long. Dan had practically demolished this city during his search as well as his guards for they only had puny human weapons and to Dan those were nothing but toys. He wasn't quiet about his antics either making sure that the man and anyone else in the building for that matter heard the agonized screaming of the guards as they perished at his hands. When he arrived at the steel triple bolt multi layered locked door he had laughed outright and just to screw with the man on the other side he had leveled several punches at it denting it. Someone behind the door had cried out at the sound of the first punch but they had gone quiet by the third and now Dan paused bored with the door.

"Did they go away?" a small voice asked and Dan grinned a maniacal grin an idea forming in his mind. The fool had a child with him.

Silently and invisibly he phased through the door. The room on the other side was lushly decorated with soft plush carpets and a cozy looking bed on one side. A man stood in the center of the room holding what looked like a shotgun a child holding a stuffed toy standing behind him. Dan floated forwards positioning himself just before the child who shuddered and though he couldn't sense Dan he instinctively took a step back.

"Daddy did the bad man leave?" the child asked again and Dan let himself fade back into view snarling "No the bad mans right here." before snatching the child up by the neck.

"Son!" the gang boss cried spinning round and leveling the shotgun at Dan who laughed.

"All of your guards are dead all of your little gang members are dead and soon your child will join them. Any last words?" Dan asked looking the man straight in the eye.

"Why?" he asked dropping to his knees

"Because you took the only thing left in the two realms that I cared about. Now I'm going to take the same from you and everyone else." Dan answered and returned his gaze to the child who he held in his grip.

The little boy had wet himself and was doing his best to try and grip Dans arm in his little hands. All Dan had to do was squeeze and his life would be over. He tried and when he found that he couldn't a frustrated snarl came from Dans lips. He tried to force his fingers closed again and again but his fingers wouldn't budge past a certain point, it was like there was something there something blocking him. Fearless face flashed in his mind and Dan dropped the child who ran to his father sobbing. He couldn't kill the child, and suddenly he could practically feel Fearless tracing on his arm 'no killing if unnecessary.'

"Fine." Dan snarled to himself and turned on the father. "You shall die in place of your son."

The man clutched his son to his chest but Dan tore the child from his grip throwing him onto the bed on the other side of the room. The man tried to back away, tried to run but Dan was faster and with the little boy watching he tore the older man apart relishing in their screams. He almost lost himself in those screams but he had one last thing to do before he left. So when he was done with the man he walked over to the child who was huddled under a black sheet. Ripping the sheet off the child he looked down at the boy who huddled in a ball shaking violently with terror.

"I just wanted to let you know." Dan said running ecto energy down the sheet turning one side of it white. "Once the innocence of your age passes I shall return and end your life as well."

The little boys eyes were wide in terror and Dan leaned forward wrapping his new cape about his shoulders fastening it with a burst of ecto energy. When his face was a few scant inches from the boys he whispered "BOO"

The child squeaked and fell back smacking his head on the wall before slumping unconscious to the mattress. Dan laughed and set fire to the room and the mans body before leaving the building to continue his rampage, destroying anyone and anything that came into his path. He lost himself that night and it would be several years before he came to any kind of conscious thought other than simple destruction. By the time that finally happened most of the world and ghost zone had been utterly destroyed by his hands. There was just destruction and darkness left for him, a darkness like the kind he hovered in now unable to break through and wake back up.

 _"Help."_ A voice called to him in the darkness, a voice he recognized.

 _"Sam?"_ Dan asked confused by his dream like state of mind.

 _"Help the kids. Please…"_ Her voice cut out suddenly with a half strangled cry of pain and Dan shot upright.

"Sam!" he yelled breathing harshly as he looked around. He had been dreaming or reliving a memory. Dan shook his head annoyed with himself. If he had to sleep he would have to find a way to not dream. The end of it had been particularly strange for he could swear he had heard Sam asking for him to help some kids.

"Sam?" Dan called once more although he realized that he was alone in the cave. Mentally he reached out but even then she didn't answer. A chill ran through him the memories of Fearless running a terrible parallel to the situation he found himself in now. Getting to his feet he found her bag a few feet away a note pinned to the fabric of one of the legs.

 _'You wouldn't wake up so I am leaving my stuff with you for now. You were right, Vivi followed but she is nearby. I will be back in a few minutes in case you wake up.'_

Dan swallowed she wasn't back yet and he had a feeling she had left a while back. A snarl caught in the back of his throat as he moved back to the sleeping bag retracted it into its pill like container and placed it back in Sam's bag. Slipping the bag on under his cape he moved towards the cave entrance happy to see that it wasn't covered in blood blossoms. Sam needed his help and he wasn't going to let her down.


End file.
